Greg Dawson, Public Affairs Specialist with the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) Office of Disaster Assistance Field Operations met with a group of Bradenton Beach business owners last week and provided information about the SBA Economic Injury Disaster Loans.
The Thursday, Sept. 27 meeting Dawson attended pertained to the potential formation of a new not-for-profit promotional organization called Love Bradenton Beach.
Dawson told those in attendance that Island business owners can fill out applications at the Island Branch Library, next to city hall in Holmes Beach.
SBA personnel are currently on hand Monday-Friday from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. and on Saturday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Dawson said these hours of operation will depend on the demand shown by the local business community.
He said the application process takes about 45 minutes, and the loan turnaround time is approximately three weeks. He said business owners can qualify for up $2 million in SBA loans, with terms as long as 30 years. He said the loans are offered at the 3.385 percent interest that was set when the red tide-related state of emergency was declared in August. He also noted that June 4, 2019, is the application deadline, but he doesn’t suggest waiting that long.
Dawson said that credit score is a qualifying factor, but the most important factor is repayment ability. He said SBA is a cash flow lender and wants to know how much a business is taking in, how much it’s spending and whether it can take on any additional debt.
On Oct. 1, Dawson distributed an email that said as of Sept. 27 his team had received applications from 90 local businesses economically impacted by the recent red tide bloom in Anna Maria Island waters. Dawson said 55 of those applications were already being processed and 39 percent (27 applications) had already been processed. Dawson’s email noted that he was not able to obtain any countywide statistics at this time and those numbers would be made available by the county.
For more information, visit the Small Business Administration or call 1-800-859-2955.
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