The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) recently approved Gov. Tom Wolf’s request to declare a disaster in Philadelphia following the civil unrest that occurred May 30 to June 8, which resulted in millions of dollars in damages.
Approval means businesses, homeowners, and eligible nonprofit organizations can apply for low-interest loans. Businesses and nonprofit organizations can apply for up to $2 million to restore damaged or destroyed buildings, inventory, equipment, and assets, or to pay for payroll, accounts payable, fixed debts, and other bills.
Homeowners can apply for up to $40,000 to repair or replace damaged personal property and up to $200,000 to repair or replace damaged or destroyed real estate.
“These low-interest loans will go a long way in helping businesses to recover,” Wolf said.
To qualify, applicants must have been affected by unrest in Philadelphia or neighboring Bucks, Delaware, and Montgomery counties.
The SBA began accepting applications Monday.
The deadline is Oct. 6 for those applying for physical property damage loans. The deadline is May 7 for those applying for economic injury disaster loans.
The SBA will not be establishing a physical help center, because of the COVID-19 pandemic, but will assist applicants via phone calls, Skype and webinars.