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Ashland businesses seek help from city By John Darling for the Tidings Apr 08, 2020 05:34 PM A A Ashland business owners, torpedoed by coronavirus, are engulfed in “triage,” as they call it, trying to avoid debt that might come with federal relief money, and criticizing city government for “abandoning” them. Representing a group called the Ashland Small Business Collaborative, Andrew Card, owner of Masala and Oberon restaurants, sent a letter to Interim City Administrator Adam Hanks saying the current relief on utility late fees and due dates of restaurant-lodging taxes is good but won’t help save the 20 businesses that signed onto the letter. The group said it wants city officials to “publicly and repeatedly” endorse rent abatement by building owners, and stretch the ban on utility late fees and the no-shutoff order for two more months, until June 30. It presently goes to the end of April. “We collectively believe it is unjust for small businesses to be liable for rent and utilities,” the letter said, “after the government has shut down our revenue-generating operations. Some businesses are able to offer takeout and delivery, however in most cases this revenue makes up less than 10% of normal daily income. Deferral is not enough. We need relief as soon as possible.” The letter was signed by the owners of Alchemy, Brothers, Dobra, Greenleaf, Mix, Peerless, Smithfields, Thai Pepper, Black Sheep, Winchester Inn and other restaurants. “We need to work together,” the businesses wrote, “to prevent a scenario where tourists visit Ashland in 2021 and experience vacant buildings and find many of their favorite businesses had to close their doors. Business closures will send a message that Ashland is a dying town. The vibrancy will be lost. This has a very real potential to affect the city of Ashland for years until those spaces get filled with new businesses.” In response to the appeal, Hanks said in an interview that further city action depends on the nature and amount of federal relief, which is still in flux and only starting to arrive. Utilities, he adds, are business expenses covered by federal grants, but food and lodging taxes are more complex and were created and dedicated to certain purposes by a public vote. Hanks said commercial utility income is a tremendous part of city revenue, and deferring payments and waiving late fees for more months may have merit but is a factor of determining need after federal relief gets here. About boosting the message of rent abatement, Hanks said it “makes sense,” but the city needs to consider all parts of the town’s economy, including landlords, first by helping get federal and state relief. In its declaration of emergency, the city did “recommend” that landlords of residential and commercial property suspend any evictions based on failure to pay rent. However, that doesn’t have the force of law. Card, in an interview, said if the city keeps all its food and lodging tax, it will face loss of a “huge portion” of revenue from businesses that go under. The letter concluded, “There are creative ways to raise money to support local businesses, but it will require brave leadership. Do not let 2020 be the year that the city of Ashland abandoned its local businesses.” Sandra Slattery, executive director of the Ashland Chamber of Commerce, said that in the current upheaval, “everyone is looking for support and is under so much stress about what resources are coming. And some people may not be aware of it, but everyone has good intentions. No one has ever been through something like this. The city wants to be as supportive as they can.” Events happen rapidly in a crisis, and Slattery said Tuesday she just got an email from federal officials that they’re dumping another quarter of a trillion dollars into the $350 billion CARES relief and Paycheck Protection Program, which is expected to be available through local banks soon. The program is complex and in huge demand, she adds, so small business people need to get good advice (starting with the chamber website), plan strategically, and keep detailed records to make sure these SBA loans are able to be turned into grants, thus avoiding debt. Loans need no collateral and can be forgiven if used in a set period for ongoing operations and are used to avoid layoffs. The chamber and city are working with state legislators and Gov. Kate Brown to access the State Stabilization Fund, which funnels the federal CARES money. It is granted to each state to allocate. Responding to the Card letter, City Councilor Dennis Slattery said the city doesn’t lack empathy and has been acting on many of his requests while “trying to get stimulus to people on the ground who need it, as well as solutions for the homeless and elderly.” As for letting businesses keep food and lodging taxes they collected, he notes, “Businesses can’t charge a tax and then say we’re going to keep it. That’s not the way it works. The city needs to fund services. The city can’t go on lockdown. We need to get in touch with how we’re going to emerge from this financially and when. “It’s not going to be easy to get visitors back in town. I know people out there are hurting and need work. We can listen to President Cheeto, but I don’t want to take my cue from there. We’re all going to have to work together and pull on the same end of the rope.” AshCityHall1.JPG