Coronavirus (COVID-19) Updates March 25th

MARCH 25TH RESOURCES AND UPDATES:

The City has created the GetFoodNYC food delivery program to provide food for coronavirus (COVID-19)-vulnerable and food-insecure New Yorkers not currently served through existing food delivery programs. Sign up here or call 311.

The Dept. of Environmental Protection advises: don't flush those disposable disinfectant wipes down your toilet!   "Trash it, don't flush it!"

Citibike is offering a 30-day free promotion to first responders and medical frontline workers.

The Mayor is suspending Alternate Side Parking for another week, through Tuesday, March 31.

Jobs at BRC
BRC, which has provided Homeless Outreach Services to the East Midtown Partnership since 2002, is continuing their heavy district presence during the pandemic. This is especially important at a time when the vulnerable homeless population can no longer access indoor areas during cold weather.

And now, at a time when so many are out of work, they're hiring. They need cooks, drivers, porters, maintenance workers, as well as LPNs, CNAs, MSWs & more. Click here for more information, and share this with your network, which probably includes people looking for work.

The East Sixties Neighborhood Association has compiled this list of restaurants in their neighborhood that are still operating for takeout and delivery.

Carnegie Hill Neighbors has also compiled this list  of restaurants in their neighborhood that are still operating for takeout and delivery.

MORE WAYS: How You Can Help

There are ways you can help keep City Harvest trucks on the road delivering essential food:  Donate (now through April 17, their board is matching every dollar donated with two dollars of their own, tripling the impact of any donation). Volunteer: check their Volunteer Portal for upcoming opportunities. Follow them on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter, and share their posts tagging City Harvest and #WeAreCityHarvest.

Foodbank for New York City needs able and healthy volunteers to help prepare meals, pack food and other essentials, click here.

American Jewish Committee (AJC) has started a campaign to share and honor acts of kindness and decency on the part of individuals, groups, organizations, companies, and countries around the world and even inspire more of them. The initiative is called #BeAMensch based off of the Yiddish word meaning “a person of integrity and honor”—or, put simply, a good person. Learn more at AJC.org/BeAMensch.

Folding@home (F@h) is a distributed computing project, using volunteers' personal computers in order to simulate protein dynamics, which in turn helps researchers find new cures and treatments for various diseases.
The project is being run out of Washington University in St. Louis and originated from Stanford University; with many New Yorkers at home wondering what they can “do” do to help with COVID-19, maybe this can be an outlet for that desire. More info, click here.

UPDATES FOR LOCAL BUSINESSES

Renaissance Economic Development Corporation, an affiliate of Asian Americans for Equality, just announced its Emergency Small Business Relief Loan Fund to help the many independent neighborhood businesses imperiled by COVID-19. Learn more (or apply) at:
English - https://renaissance-ny.org/emergency-small-business-relief-loan-fund/
Chinese - https://renaissance-ny.org/emergency-loan-fund-chinese/
Korean - https://renaissance-ny.org/small-business-fund-korean
Spanish - https://renaissance-ny.org/emergency-fund-spanish/

GoFundMe set up a Small Business Relief Initiative providing a $500 grant to those qualifying  businesses that raise at least $500 on GoFundMe. To learn more, click here.

NYC Employee Retention Grant Program
To help small businesses deal with the impact of COVID-19, the City has launched the Employee Retention Grant Program to help retain employees as businesses face decreased revenue. This program is available to New York City businesses with one to four employees that can demonstrate at least a 25% decrease in revenue as a result of COVID-19. Eligible businesses will receive a grant covering up to 40% of their payroll for two months. Businesses can access up to $27,000.

Who Can Apply?
Businesses, including non-profits, must:

  • Be located within the five boroughs of New York City
  • Demonstrate that the COVID-19 outbreak caused at least a 25% decrease in revenue
  • Employ 1-4 employees in total across all locations
  • Have been in operation for at least 6 months
  • Have no outstanding tax liens or legal judgements

To learn more and apply, click here.

U.S Small Business Administration (SBA) Economic Injury Disaster Loans

The U.S. Small Business Administration’s (SBA) Economic Injury Disaster Loans offer up to $2 million to help small businesses and private non-profit organizations overcome the temporary loss of revenue they are experiencing as a result of the Coronavirus. The loans may be used to pay fixed debts, payroll, accounts payable and other bills that can’t be paid because of the disaster’s impact. The interest rate is 3.75% for small businesses without credit available elsewhere, and 2.75% for non-profits, with a maximum term of 30 years, depending on the ability to repay. Click here for more info.

Check out the NYSBDC application guide for an excellent step-by-step explanation of applying through the SBA’s disaster loan portal. To apply you will need to complete and upload the below forms:

Additionally, you should be prepared to provide:

  • Personal Federal income tax returns for each principal owning 20% or more of the applicant business
  • 2019 Business Tax Return (Filed) OR Your 2019 year-end Profit and Loss Statement and Balance Sheet & Most Recent (Filed) Business Tax Return
  • 2020 Year to Date Profit and Loss Statement.

You can also refer to the SBA process summary or contact the SBA directly at [email protected] or (800)-659‐2955.

Coronavirus (COVID-19) FAQs & Resources

To get regular updates on the latest developments with coronavirus in New York City text COVID to 692-692. You will receive regular SMS texts with the latest news and developments. Please check nyc.gov/health/coronavirus for the latest updates

If you are experiencing stress or feel anxious, contact NYC Well at 888-NYC-WELL (888-692- 9355) or text WELL to 65173. NYC Well is a confidential help line that is staffed 24/7 by trained counselors who can provide brief supportive therapy, crisis counseling, and connections to behavioral health treatment, in more than 200 languages.

Additional resources: 

The Mayor has called for extension of the U.S. Census, including many tactics used by the Census Bureau to reach those who have not responded and to extend the window of time where residents can respond to the census online at my2020census.gov OR by phone in these languages: