White Bear Lake Business Relief Grant Program

This program is for White Bear Lake based businesses, including sole proprietors and home-based businesses, who have experienced a significant loss of revenue due to the COVID-19 public health emergency.  Applications for the program will be accepted until October 5.  Businesses that have not received grant funding from the county or state will be prioritized to receive funds through this program. 

See the Apply section for the link to the application.

Eligible Businesses

To be eligible, businesses must:

• Have a physical location in the City of White Bear Lake (including home-based businesses)
• Demonstrate a minimum 20% revenue loss due to COVID-19 for the period March to June 2020 in comparison to March to June 2019 (businesses started after March 2019, must demonstrate a revenue loss for the period March to June 2020 in comparison to their first four months of operation)
• Must have been in business since September 1, 2019
• Must be in good standing with the Minnesota Secretary of State
• If a home-based business, must be authorized by the City of White Bear Lake and document that the business is a primary source of income

Ineligible Business

The following are not eligible for the Program:

• Non-profit organizations
• Corporate or multi-state chains (locally-owned franchises are eligible)
• Businesses that were behind on any taxes prior to February 29, 2020
• Businesses that are out of compliance with applicable City and County ordinances, codes, or licensing at the time of application
• Businesses whose primary source of income is from gambling, passive investments, property rentals, property management, or billboards
• Businesses that derive any income from adult entertainment (as defined in municipal code 1124), real estate transactions, or lobbying

Eligible Uses

Businesses may apply for grant funds to cover any of the following expenses (incurred between March 1 and September 30, 2020):

• Personal Protective Equipment
• Payroll
• Rent or mortgage payments
• Utilities
• Unbudgeted marketing costs related to COVID-19
• Building modifications related to COVID-19

Grants cannot be used toward expenses that have been reimbursed through other grant awards or CARES Act funding sources (including the Ramsey County Small Business Relief Fund, Washington County Small Business Relief Grant Program, Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development Small Business Emergency Loan Program, Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development Small Business Relief Grant Program, SBA Payroll Protection Program, and SBA Economic Injury Disaster Loan Program).

Apply

Applications will be accepted until September 21 to 11:59 p.m. on October 5.  This program will be administered by SPEDCO.  Click here to apply (note: the application will not be available until 8 a.m. on September 21).  

Grant Awards

The maximum grant awards available are as follows (in no case shall award amount exceed amount of eligible uses):

• Sole proprietors are eligible for up to $3,500
• Businesses with 2-10 full time equivalent employees or contractors are eligible for up to $7,500
• Businesses with 11 or more full time equivalent employees or contractors are eligible for up to $10,000

Application Period

Applications will be accepted from September 21 to October 5 (at 11:59 pm).

Questions

Please click here for list of frequently asked questions. SPEDCO is the Program Administrator for the White Bear Lake Business Relief Program. For questions on the application, please call 651-631-4900 or email jonathan.sagemartinson@spedco.com or paul.draper@spedco.com.