$702,000 distributed to Monterey businesses impacted by Covid-19
MONTEREY, Calif. (KION) Local businesses have faced a challenging past six months since the pandemic forced them to shut their doors or limit operations, but some municipalities are helping them get back on their feet.
The City of Monterey has distributed financial aid to 85 local businesses totaling more than $700,000. It's part of a local economic stimulus plan.
Local businesses KION spoke with Tuesday said the pandemic has been challenging to get through but the financial assistance from the city provided them with a boost to pay rent, pay employees and, in some cases, keep their doors open.
“We had many, many events lined up in March and beyond, but all of a sudden, somewhere in the middle of March, everything got cancelled,” Chic Event Rentals President Anthony Karabetyan said.
The event company has two locations, one in Monterey and one in Castroville. They normally hold thousands events each year but now, Karabetyan said they’re operating at one third of what they used to.
“We had to issue lots of refunds. There was a lots of postponements. Brides were in tears, crying. They didn't know what to do. We didn’t know what to do,” Karabetyan said.
But an economic stimulus grant of $10,000 from the city of monterey gave them a much needed boost…allowing them to keep their doors open at their monterey show room.
Anthony Karabetyan, President , Chic Event Rentals:
“We were going to close this permanently so because the city helped us out, we decided to keep this open, use that money toward rent and see how long we can keep this going.”
Alta Bakery and Cafe downtown received $5,000 in assistance. Partner Kirk Probasco said it helped them pay staff, rent and bills.
But now, things are looking up for Alta after a difficult few months.
“March, April were very difficult. We definitely lost money during those months. May was a break even month for us, but June, July and August–since people have become a little bit more comfortable moving out and getting out and about and them understanding that we have this outdoor dining–business has been very good," Probasco said.
These are just two of the 85 local businesses that received a total of $702,000. Each business received $5,000 to $25,000 with much of the largest grants going to businesses near the wharfs.
A city official told KION funds for the grants have been exhausted for general businesses but some funding is still available for businesses along some pier and wharf areas, or what they call tidelands areas.
