Local city and county leaders continue to work collaboratively to provide emergency commercial assistance to businesses in Richmond and Wayne County suffering financially from the effects of COVID-19. The Richmond/Wayne County COVID-19 Restaurant Subsidy Program is the newest and focuses on restaurants who have been extremely hard hit by the pandemic. The new program will provide financial assistance to Wayne County-owned restaurants by covering up to $1,000 per month in commercial rental, mortgage, or utility assistance for a maximum of $3,000. Funds will be paid directly to the landlord, mortgage holder, or utility companies in that priority order. The program will remain in place until March 30, 2021 or until the funds are exhausted. Program details and the application are available now and can be found at: https://whywaynecounty.com/richmond-wayne-county-covid-19-subsidy-program/.

Restaurant owners interested in applying for the program must meet the following qualifications:

1. The business must be physically located in Wayne County and subject to payment of Wayne County taxes.

2. Owner must reside in Wayne County.

4. The business must be current on all property and payroll taxes.
5. Business must be a restaurant, as evidenced by 70% of revenue generated by food sales. Indiana does not allow smoking in restaurants, so if smoking is allowed in your establishment, you are not eligible for this program.
6. Restaurant was forced to shut down or operate at a reduced capacity by State or Local government because of a Public Health or Executive Order.
7. Restaurant must have been operating at 100% capacity in Wayne County prior to March 15, 2020.
8. Restaurant must be currently operational in some capacity.
9. Restaurant must be experiencing a loss of at least 30% revenue over the same period last year for each month emergency commercial assistance is provided.
10. Restaurant must have been current on their rent/mortgage payments as of March 15, 2020.
11. Applicant must be following current CDC guidelines and be compliant with mandated protocol. If an applicant is cited for non-compliance at any time during the program, they will be denied further assistance.

The following supporting documents will be required to be submitted with the application:

1. A copy of the front and back of driver’s license or government issued ID. This must belong to the owner of the restaurant to establish Wayne County residence.
2. A copy of the current lease agreement, mortgage statement or utility statement(s) you are seeking assistance for payment.
3. Point of Sale report showing 70% of revenue generated by food sales.
4. Monthly Profit and Loss statements for December 2019 and 2020, as well as January 2020 and 2021 and February 2020 and 2021, when available.
5. Current Balance Sheet.

Funding for the loan program was made possible through contributions from the following sources: Wayne County Government, City of Richmond, EDC of Wayne County through the Consolidated EDIT Fund, and the Economic Growth Group.

Program details and the application can be found at https://whywaynecounty.com/richmond-wayne-county-covid-19-subsidy-program/