Hudson, NY – Columbia Economic Development Corporation (CEDC) and Berkshire Taconic Community Foundation (BTCF) on April 24 announced the award of 92 grants to local businesses through the Columbia County Business Continuity Fund. This joint effort with the Columbia County Chamber of Commerce and the Hudson Business Coalition was launched March 30 to raise new resources in support of small businesses during the COVID-19 crisis.
Generous individuals, foundations and businesses made this fund possible. Major gifts came from BTCF’s Community Fund and CEDC, BTCF’s Fund for Columbia County, the Hudson River Bank and Trust Foundation, Martha McMaster and Sheldon Evans, Berkshire Bank, Henry J. Kimelman Family Foundation, Stephen Mack and Brian Schaefer, Susan Danziger and Albert Wenger/The Spark of Hudson, Linda Gatter/Max Dannis Fund and the Arthur and Eileen Newman Family Foundation. In addition, more than 50 individuals made online gifts totaling over $22,000.
The businesses receiving grants were spread out across Columbia County and met key grant making criteria, including being located in city, town or village centers, open to the public and reliant on foot traffic, and having fewer than 10 full-time employees and less than $1 million in annual revenue. An independent, volunteer committee of local business leaders reviewed and rated each application based on these criteria. The committee had representation from throughout the county and from women- and minority-run businesses.
Award amounts varied based on the criteria established and total resources available, with nine of out 10 grants sized at $1,500 or $2,500. These one-time, rapid response grants were designed to help cover costs such as retaining employees, rent and other fixed operational costs.
As a handful of businesses declined their awards and asked for their funds to be reinvested in the community, the independent review committee for the CCBCF is pleased to award grants to additional eligible businesses to close-out this cycle of the CCBCF grant: CrossRoads Food Store; DMC Racing Products; Iron Horse Cigar Depot; Sadhana Center for Yoga and Meditation, LLC; and Tommy’s Salon.
Future grant rounds and funding opportunities are contingent on the donation of new funds. Should funding become available, additional grant rounds will be announced separately through the Berkshire Taconic Community Foundation and Columbia Economic Development Corporation channels and may have different eligibility criteria.