NYC Business Assistance Programs for Businesses Affected by Hurricane Sandy

   

  

Attention Businesses Affected by Hurricane Sandy! 

New York City, including the Department of Small Business Services (SBS) and the New York City Economic Development Corporation (NYCEDC), is coordinating a set of services to assist small businesses in recovering from Hurricane Sandy. Below is an outline of available programs and relevant contact information.  

New York City Business Assistance Programs

For small- to mid-sized businesses that have experienced business interruption

A low-interest working capital bridge loan program will be available, patterned after similar programs deployed in past emergencies. Loans will be capped at $10,000. The application and intake process is still being determined. Please contact NYC Business Solutions staff as outlined below.

For mid- to large-sized businesses that need to undertake rebuilding

An emergency sales tax letter from New York City Industrial Development Authority (IDA) will be available allowing businesses to avoid payment of New York City and New York State sales taxes on materials purchased for rebuilding. IDA will also waive all fees and, while following State law, look to streamline its normal procedure. This program is expected to offer economic benefits to reconstruction projects costing $500,000 or more. Please contact Shin Mitsugi at smitsugi@nycedc.com for further information on this program.

For any business that is temporarily displaced from its space

Short-term "swing" office space at Brooklyn Army Terminal available free of charge for the next 30 days. NYCEDC has approximately 40,000 square feet of warehouse space at the Terminal that can be used for this purpose. Please contact NYC Business Solutions staff as outlined below. 

For any business in need of assistance

SBS will be the primary point of contact for all businesses seeking assistance - all of whom should call if they need help.

The SBS Business Outreach Team and Emergency Response Unit's Large Scale Response Team will be deployed after the storm to help all impacted small businesses. This team is currently on-call for any storm-related business inquiries and is closely coordinating with the NYC Office of Emergency Management. 

NYC Business Solutions Centers will coordinate with local community-based-organizations in severely affected areas to help businesses with the application process for the emergency loan program.

NYC Business Solutions contact information

For further information on the above programs, please contact NYC Business Solutions by filling out our Contact an Account Manager form or calling 311 and asking for "NYC Business Solutions."

Federal Aid Programs for State of New York Disaster Recovery

Loans are available up to $2 million for business property losses not fully compensated by insurance. Loans of up to $2 million are also available for small businesses, small agricultural cooperatives and most private, non-profit organizations of all sizes that have suffered disaster-related cash flow problems and need funds for working capital to recover from the disaster's adverse economic impact. This loan in combination with a property loss loan cannot exceed a total of $2 million.

Those in the county designated for assistance to affected residents and business owners can begin the disaster application process by registering online at www.DisasterAssistance.gov, by web enabled mobile device at m.fema.gov or by calling 1-800-621-FEMA (3362). Disaster assistance applicants, who have a speech disability or hearing loss and use TTY, should call 1-800-462-7585 directly; for those who use 711 or Video Relay Service (VRS), call 1-800-621-3362. The toll-free telephone numbers are available from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. (local time) Monday through Sunday until further notice.  Applicants registering for aid should be prepared to provide basic information about themselves (name, permanent address, phone number), insurance coverage and any other information to help substantiate losses.