City awards final grants

Portland’s coronavirus relief program is over.

The Portland Economic Development Income Tax (EDIT) Advisory Committee met Thursday to award final grants of $1,250, the maximum amount allowed under the program, to Medler’s Furniture, Hair Studio and Markie LeMaster of Upper Kut Salon.

Medler’s Furniture was reimbursed for the thousands of dollars it spent on virus preventative supplies, Upper Kut Salon reported a profit loss of $8,000 and Hair Studio reported a loss of $5,500.

The city provided relief to a dozen local businesses through $1,250 grants totaling $15,000. Those businesses were reimbursed in part for reported loss of profits during the COVID-19 pandemic or for buying personal protection equipment and cleaning supplies.

Other businesses that were previously awarded $1,250 grants were P&B United Enterprise, Flower Nook, Adams Physical Therapy Services Inc., Patriot Fitness, The Loft on Meridian, Progressive Office Products, Renegade Custom Cycles, Greazy Pickle LLC and Stacy Stammen, an independent beautician who works in Upper Kut.

The number of businesses that applied for the Small Business Resilience Grant Program — 14 in total — were less than what Portland Mayor John Boggs expected after he established the program by executive order in July.

“I”m really disappointed … but our hearts were in the right place,” Boggs said.

The program was available for any Portland small business if it had a reimbursable COVID-19-related cost or profit shortage compared to the previous fiscal year.

Triple Taxi Service, which was among the first to apply for the program after applications opened in August, and Patriot Sportswear were not awarded grants after they were given until noon Thursday — more than a week after the application deadline for the program — to provide needed supplement financial information.

Various tax forms were required from a business applying for the program in order to be eligible for grant money. Each business also had to be up-to-date on its property taxes.

Many of the businesses also received money from the federal Paycheck Protection Program (PPP). EDIT committee members Boggs, Kent McClung and Janet Powers, absent Lori Phillips and Mike Aker, discussed how the U.S. Senate is expected to reconvene and vote on another federal coronavirus relief bill in the coming months.

Jay County Development Corporation’s Jodi Hayes chaired the meeting in the absence of EDIT committee chairman Travis Richards. The grant program was funded and administrated by the EDIT committee using money from the general EDIT fund.