The City of Takoma Park is accepting applications for emergency grants to local small businesses affected by the COVID-19 emergency. The Citywide Small Business Mini-Grant Program has been established to provide grants of up to $3,000.
Gov. Larry Hogan extended the closure of public schools due to the COVID-19 emergency, and Montgomery County Public Schools began distributing laptops to students needing them for distance learning. The closures are in effect until at least April 24 and all extracurricular programs, athletic programs are cancelled.
The County Council yesterday introduced emergency legislation and special appropriations to assist small businesses and nonprofit organizations affected by the COVID-19 emergency. The actions would allow the county executive to provide grants of up to $75,000 to organizations “with 100 or fewer full-time-equivalent employees that can demonstrate financial losses caused by the public health emergency.”
Local nonprofit Silver Spring Cares has teamed up with a group of Silver Spring/Takoma Park restaurants to provide meals to needy area residents. To fund the effort and help to support the restaurants’ employees, SSC last week launched a Community Connection Go Fund Me page, according to Heather Foley, SSC’s executive director.
The Silver Spring Arts & Entertainment District and the Greater Silver Spring Chamber of Commerce are building lists of local restaurants and other businesses open to serve customers during the COVID-19 emergency. The SSAED list includes 53 restaurants, while the GSSCC includes operating information about, in addition to restaurants, fitness studios and centers, hotels, theaters, pet services, florists, auto services and “other retail.”
Residents of the Seven Oaks/Evanswood neighborhood this week crowd sourced a list of local restaurants still serving customers during the COVID-19 emergency. The Google Docs spreadsheet is online for reference and open to edits and additions from others, who have since expanded the original list.
On a normal Thursday, the Source posts a curated list of upcoming events gathered from various places, including our own calendar of community events. This is not a normal Thursday.
The county’s Department of Transportation has designated six temporary “No Parking” zones in downtown Silver Spring to make curbside pickup of takeout orders easier for local residents. In addition, the county has temporarily established free parking for residents in the Bonifant/Dixon garage at 1101 Bonifant St.
Abol Ethiopian Restaurant closed last week after an unsuccessful attempt to rebrand the location, then returning to the original concept. The location at 8626 Colesville Rd. was rebranded as Blu Nile Restaurant and Lounge with a launch shortly before the holidays.