Miami-Dade, FL – -Dade Board of County Commissioners Chairman Joe A. Martinez has announced that applications will be available on Friday, November 4 for Florida’s Small Business Emergency ‘Bridge Loan’ Program. The program will provide $5 million in emergency, short-term loans to Miami-Dade County small businesses severely impacted by Hurricane Wilma.
Businesses with 100 employees or less that sustained physical damage during Hurricane Wilma will be able access interest-free loans of up to $25,000 to make repairs and replace inventory. The loans, which must be repaid in 90 or 180 days, are intended to “bridge the gap” between the time a major catastrophe hits and when a business has secured other resources – profits from revived business, payment of insurance claims or secured longer-term loans.
“Even the best prepared small businesses can suffer devastating setbacks after disasters such as hurricanes,” said Chairman Martinez. “Small businesses and their employees are an important factor in our state economy and it’s important that proprietors be given every opportunity to keep their businesses afloat. I am grateful for the Beacon Council’s foresight in requesting the program be activated and Governor Jeb Bush’s ready response in making the funds available.”
To be eligible, a business owner must have been in operation on or before October 17, 2004; have between two and 100 employees; have verifiable, physical damage to their business facility; show need for the loan and have repaid all prior Florida Small Business Emergency Bridge Loans. Self-employed individuals may be eligible on a case-by-case basis. Applications will be accepted through December 16, 2005.
To help business owners apply for and utilize bridge loans and to face other operations concerns, the Beacon Council, Miami-Dade County, Enterprise Florida, FEMA, the Small Business Administration, the Florida Department of Financial Services, the Small Business Development Center, and South Florida Workforce will present Emergency Business Assistance Workshops on Wednesday, November 9 and Thursday, November 10. Wednesday’s workshop will be held in the Miami-Dade Board of County Commissioners’ Chambers, 111 NW 1 St, from 4:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. On Thursday, one workshop will be held from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. at the South Dade Regional Library, 10750 SW 211 St and another will be held from 4:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. at the Joseph Caleb Center, 5400 NW 22 Ave.
Loan applications will be available at the workshops, at www.beaconcouncil.com, at www.miamidade.gov, Miami-Dade County Commissioner’s District Offices and all Team Metro offices. Information is also available by calling the Beacon Council at 305-579-1300, or by calling the County’s Answer Center at 3-1-1.
