By Melinda Munson
A Skagway Traditional Council (STC) grant will award up to $30,000 per qualified year-round business, depending on the number of applicants.
The STC Cares Business Grant Program set aside $100,000 for local businesses.
“They wanted to make sure the businesses that are serving the community are being taken care of, especially those that are open during the winter. It’s going to be a hard winter,” said Sara Kinjo-Hischer, STC tribal administrator.
To qualify, businesses must be located in Skagway, have been operating since March 2020 and plan to remain open through December 2020. Business owners must be Skagway residents currently residing in Skagway.
Businesses must have fewer than 50 employees and have received $5,000 or less from the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) or the Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDL) or “show a net loss after accounting for PPP or EIDL.”
Businesses must also have a 2020 Municipality of Skagway business license and a State of Alaska business license. Marijuana related companies do not qualify.
A separate grant, STC Cares Made in Skagway Mini-Grant Program, will award up to $500 per eligible business to persons who “rely on making supplemental income through farmers markets sales or their goods being sold through other businesses in town.” The funds must be used for expenses related to the homemade business.
Business owners must live and sell their handmade goods in Skagway. They may not have a storefront and must have obtained a business license prior to March 2020. They must prove that their business “incurred expenses for the 2020 season and have minimal sales in the 2020 season due to business closures.”
Applications for both grants are due Oct. 31 and can we found at http://www.skagwaytraditional.org under forms.
