City of Lincoln encourages local businesses to participate in round two of the Business Interruption Grant program

 

[September 19, 2020] 

Illinois' Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity's second round of the Business Interruption Grant (BIG) program is open! There is $220 million dollars split between about five priority business areas. The full information can be found here, but what follows are the highlights on how to direct your business outreach and communication in your community:

The City of Lincoln encourages all businesses to apply, from retail, to hotels, hospitality, restaurants bars, etc. There are dedicated monies in this program for many industries.

The largest pot of money in BIG Round 2 is focused at 'Heavily Impacted Industries' as follows (click here for a more comprehensive definition for these businesses):

• Event center

• Music venue

• Performing arts venue

• Indoor recreation

• Amusement park

• Movie theater

• Museum

• Charter/Shuttle bus service

There is funding for other priority businesses as well (click here for more comprehensive definitions of priority businesses):

• Independently-owned retail

• Restaurant, bar, or tavern

• Fitness center

• Tourism- and travel-related activities, including lodging and accommodations

• Support services for arts and events

There are dedicated funds for Agriculture, but we are awaiting an application from the Illinois Department of Ag and will share with everyone when that is received.

Take note to have businesses review and execute the Business Certification Form & Agreement here to include with their application.

The application itself can be found here.

Please also see the following announcement from Governor Pritzker regarding this grant.

Governor Pritzker and DCEO Open Application for $220 Million in Business Interruption Grants

[Lincoln City Administrator Beth Kavelman]