HomeMy WebLinkAboutJ - 10 Cortland County Microenterprises Grant Program CORTLAND COUNTY
60 Central Avenue
Cortland NY 13045
Savannah Hempstead
Public Information Officer
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
August 22, 2023
Savannah Hempstead, Public Information Officer
shempstead@cortland-co.org
607-753-5048
Cortland County Recently Awarded Microenterprise Program Accepting Applications
Cortland County, New York – Cortland County applied for and received funding this year that will provide
assistance to eligible microenterprises operating or wishing to operate in the County. The County hired Thoma
Development Consultants of Cortland, to administer the Program through an RFP process. The County and Thoma
Development will hold a public meeting on Tuesday September 12, 2023 to provide information about the Program,
followed by a question and answer period. The meeting, which will begin at 5:30 PM, will be held at the Chamber
of Commerce Building, 83 Main Street, in Cortland. A Zoom meeting will be held Wednesday at 3 PM for those
that cannot make the in-person meeting.
Savannah Hempstead, the Clerk of the Cortland County Legislature, is the County’s grant contact. She described the
Program as, “An important economic development tool for very small businesses (those with five or fewer
individuals, including the owners), that typically do not have access to traditional financing. The Program’s mission
is to facilitate economic opportunity for low-and-moderate income individuals or businesses through assistance to
lower income business owners or through job creation for lower income individuals.” Ms. Hempstead went on to
note that, historically the funding has been very competitive. She stated, “Given the competitive nature of the
Program I would encourage anyone that feels it might be a useful resource to attend one of the meetings. You can
access Program materials on the County’s website at www.cortland-co.org. As you will see from the materials, both
existing microenterprises seeking to expand and start-ups can apply for the funds, which can be used for a multitude
of purposes. More detail will be provided at the September 12th meeting, but I encourage anyone that might be
interested to start the application process now as the first deadline is scheduled for October 27th.”
Cortland County is looking forward to receiving applications that will provide new jobs or opportunities in the
County. “I am excited that this assistance is available to our small business community. Small businesses are the
backbone of our economy and have always been important component in a community’s economic health. Eligible
microenterprises can apply for up to $35,000 to be used for equipment, furniture and fixtures, inventory, and some
soft costs”, said Ms. Hempstead.
For a link to the Zoom meeting, please contact Ryan Harriott by email at Thoma Development Consultants,
Ryan@thomadevelopment.com, or by phone at 607-753-1433. Funding for the Microenterprise Program is provided
under the federal Community Development Block Grant Program (CDBG), which is administered in New York State
by the NYS Office of Community Renewal (OCR).
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