Regional nonprofit Mountain BizWorks has awarded nearly $3.69 million in grants to small businesses severely impacted by Hurricane Helene.
the money will go to 276 local businesses in Buncombe County.
Noah Wilson, director of sector development for Mountain BizWorks, said at Thursday’s briefing in Buncombe County that the group had received 843 applications for the grant, requesting a total of $18 million.
“These are our friends and neighbors,” Wilson said. “The numbers can tell a story, but the reality is that each one of them is an individual, a family, a community of their own that needed funding, needs funding today.”
Asheville Mayor Esther Manheimer said in a statement that the numbers “reflect the urgent need for these grants and that additional federal and state resources will be needed to ensure our local businesses have the support they need to recover and thrive.”
News of the grants comes as negotiations in Washington on $100 billion in aid for Helene hit a roadblock. The relief plan was originally included in a bipartisan stopgap spending bill. sleepless by congressional leaders on Tuesday. But House Republicans abandoned the deal after President-elect Trump and his advisers, including Elon Musk, criticized him harshly Wednesday.
Small businesses are an important part of the Buncombe County economy and many are fighting to survive after Helene.
Wilson cited Buncombe County’s unemployment rate, which skyrocketed from the lowest to the highest in the state after the storm.
“Priority in this program was given to companies seeking to retain and rehire local employees,” Wilson said. “And these funds will support 2,935 local jobs, including the recovery of 1,035 local jobs. Seventy-one percent of these awards were companies with fewer than 10 employees.”
Demand for Mountain BizWorks grants was more than five times greater than the funding available, Wilson said. The organization hopes to make additional rounds of grants in the future once more funds arrive.
In addition to the grants announced Thursday, Mountain BizWorks has provided nearly $21 million in recovery loans to 351 Buncombe County businesses, Wilson said.
Also on Thursday, Dogwood Health Trust announced which is making an additional $20 million in commitments to help Helene. The amount includes $10 million in funding for the Western North Carolina Small Business Initiative, a relief fund for small businesses, as well as funding for early childhood education, mental health services and rental assistance.