Elsinore-Wildomar Restaurants, Bars Get Huge Grant Opportunity

LAKE ELSINORE-WILDOMAR, CA — Lake Elsinore, Wildomar restaurants and bars impacted by COVID-19 health restrictions are eligible for significant financial relief from the federal government, according to an announcement Monday from the Small Business Association.

Key details about application requirements, eligibility, and a program guide for the SBA's Restaurant Revitalization Fund were unveiled in English at www.sba.gov/restaurants and in Spanish at www.sba.gov/restaurantes.

The program will provide restaurants with funding equal to their pandemic-related revenue loss up to $10 million per business and no more than $5 million per physical location. Recipients are not required to repay the funding as long as funds are used for eligible uses no later than March 11, 2023, according to the SBA.

The $28.6 billion fund to support the hardest-hit small restaurants and bars is part of President Joe Biden's American Rescue Plan.

“Today, we are starting the process to help restaurants and bars across the country devastated by the pandemic, and this is our message: Help is here. With the launch of the Restaurant Revitalization Fund, we’re prioritizing funding to the hardest-hit small businesses — irreplaceable gathering places in our neighborhoods and communities that need a lifeline now to get back on their feet,” SBA Administrator Isabella Casillas Guzman said Monday in a released statement. “And, thanks to clear directives from Congress, we’re rolling out this program to make sure that these businesses can meet payroll, purchase supplies, and get what they need in place to transition to today’s COVID-restricted marketplace.”

A pilot period is taking place to iron out any technical issues with the program. Participants in the pilot will be randomly selected from existing PPP borrowers in priority groups, but will not receive funds until the application portal is open to the public, according to the SBA.

Following the pilot, the application portal will be opened to the public. The official application launch date will be announced at a later date. For the first 21 days that the program is open, priority will be given to small businesses owned by women, veterans, and socially and economically disadvantaged individuals, according to the SBA.

“Local restaurants and bars are being served very good news today,” Erika Polmar, executive director of the Independent Restaurant Coalition, said Monday. “These guidelines were crafted by the SBA after conversations with independent restaurant and bar operators across the country. We are grateful to the SBA for their hard work to make this process as accessible as possible in a short period of time.”

In addition to restaurant groups and advocacy groups for underserved business communities, the SBA said it engaged with national and state trade associations, and other small business stakeholders in recent weeks to understand their concerns about relief programs.

“Small and independent craft breweries are vibrant community gathering places that can be found in nearly every congressional district in the U.S. and contribute to manufacturing, hospitality, retail, tourism, and agricultural industries,” said Bob Pease, president and CEO, Brewers Association. “We are pleased to work with the SBA to promote the Restaurant Revitalization Fund landing page and its available resources, and assist the breweries hit hardest by COVID-19 secure much-needed additional relief to help them survive the pandemic and prepare for the restart of the economy.”

This SBA website is the best source for up-to-date information for eligible restaurants and bars interested in the funding.