McHenry County to award $5,000 to help almost 60 small businesses affected by COVID-19 pandemic

About 60 small businesses will receive $5,000 in one-time emergency stabilization grants from McHenry County to help replace revenue lost because of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a Friday news release.

The grants, created in April by the county, were designed to help businesses that didn’t qualify for other assistance, including the federal Paycheck Protection Program or Small Business Administration emergency loans.

Businesses had to have five or fewer employees to qualify, according to the release. They also had to be private, for-profit entities; could not be part of a franchise; and had to demonstrate they did not qualify for federal aid.

The county set up a $250,000 fund for the program using Community Development Block Grant money obtained from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, according to the release. Those dollars included existing grant funds as well as additional dollars obtained amid the pandemic.

“I’m elated that so many businesses stepped forward to take advantage of our program,” McHenry County Board Chairman Jack Franks said in the release. “While many businesses were able to take advantage of the federal CARES Act and other assistance, our smallest businesses could not, and we quickly jumped in to provide them some relief.”

A one-stop resource and information center for McHenry County businesses of all sizes and their employees is available at the Resume McHenry County website, resumemchenrycounty.com.