From the Town of Danville:
During a special meeting held via Zoom on Friday, December 18, 2020, the Danville Town Council approved actions to provide additional aid to Danville businesses hard hit by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
Restrictions placed on small business as a result of the pandemic prompted the council to examine additional ways to provide support. At the December 18, 2020 meeting, council approved three actions designed to assist affected businesses.
- Approved the appropriation of $275,000 to fund Phase 2 of the Forward Focus COVID-19 Business Grant program
- Approved a partnership with Townsend Public Affairs to establish a Business Assistance Program that provides FREE guidance for Danville businesses seeking to access available funding resources from the anticipated COVID-19 federal stimulus relief.
- Adopted an urgency ordinance establishing a temporary cap of 15% on commission, fees, and costs charged by third-party food delivery services such as DoorDash, Grubhub, etc. This cap would affect restaurants in the Town of Danville for the remainder of the pandemic.
Town staff surveyed local restaurants prior to the meeting, receiving 17 responses, and during the public hearing Councilmembers heard from two residents on the issue. After a thorough discussion, council voted to approve the actions designed to help struggling businesses.
“The Town Council has supported a number of programs developed to assist local businesses through this challenging year,” said Economic Development Manager Jill Bergman. “Today’s approval of these initiatives underscores the Town’s commitment to our local businesses.” She added, “With these additional tools, we look forward to helping our business community take advantage of any and all resources available to help them get through this difficult time.”
The council continues to encourage the community to do all they can to support local business during this crisis and take the Pledge to Support Local Businesses #pledgedanville. Ways to help include purchasing gift cards, ordering takeout, and shopping in person or online and using the established 10-minute curbside pickup zones.
For more information on the new initiatives, go to www.danville.ca.gov/doingbusiness or contact Economic Development Manager Jill Bergman at (925) 314-3369 or jbergman@danville.ca.gov.
