The Minneapolis City Council and Mayor Jacob Frey released their plan Thursday for the $7 million in allocated funds to help small businesses recover from the effects of Operation Metro Surge.
According to the city, the restaurant and small business industry suffered $81 million in losses over the months of the federal government’s immigration crackdown. The $7 million is part of an effort to “rebuild and come back stronger,” Frey said.
The majority of the funds — $4 million — is intended to cover business license fee renewals for the food and hospitality industries. Those who have already paid their fees will have them reimbursed, the city says. Another $500,000 will go directly to cultural markets to support operations, security and other improvements.
The city says that $350,000 will go towards the Great Streets program, which provides funding to nonprofit businesses, and $500,000 will be allocated for consulting services for small businesses.
There is also $200,000 to support Latino Business Week and Black Business Week, and $600,000 in funding for independent music venues.
Lastly, $350,000 will go towards “incentivizing content creators around the City to spread the word about artists, businesses, and untold stories,” the city said.
“We know businesses have been struggling, and I’m proud the City Council took this step to try and provide some relief. We recognize this isn’t nearly enough to meet the current need, but the cost of inaction outweighs the financial restraint in this moment,” said City Council President Elliott Payne.
Also on Thursday, the City Council approved $2.8 million in rental assistance. It’s in addition to the $1 million in assistance approved in February and the $3 million pledged by the Wilson Foundation.
The council failed to override a mayoral veto during that same meeting that would have extended the eviction notice period from 30 to 60 days.
