News & Events

Update for Friday, May 8, 2020

• Dutchess County Executive Marcus Molinaro announced today the creation of two programs to help small local businesses left behind in the wake by the Small Business Administration’s (SBA) “flawed” roll-out of the Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) program and the Payroll Protection Program (PPP).
• At its next board meeting, the Dutchess County Local Development Corporation (LDC) is expected to vote on establishing a COVID-19 small business express loan program in partnership Community Capital New York (CCNY) that will help the smallest affected businesses in Dutchess County that have been unable to secure SBA assistance. The zero interest loan program is intended exclusively for small independent businesses located in Dutchess County that have not been able to secure SBA, PPP, or EIDL or any other COVID related aid and comes with an optional deferred payment plan and loan amounts up to $10,000.
• The Dutchess County Industrial Development Agency (IDA) will vote to establish a no-fee, fast tracked, COVID-19 Sales and Use Tax Relief Program to help local manufacturers expand capacity and produce much needed personal protection equipment in Dutchess County. The Dutchess County IDA and LDC will meet on Wednesday, May 13 at 8:00 a.m. to consider resolutions on both programs. As more details are announced, they will be announced in this email.
• Complimentary reusable cloth face coverings are once again being made available to essential businesses and nonprofit organizations located in Dutchess County. They will be available for pickup on May 15. Registration is required by May 14, and can be done so by clicking HERE.
• Visit HEREfor updates on Governor Andrew Cuomo’s plan to reopen businesses and nonprofits in New York.
• Empire State Development released guidance that allows golfers with disabilities or those who own a personal cart to ride and play. The ESD spokeswoman emphasized that maintenance workers and security are the only employees allowed to be at the course. For that reason, golfers who want to ride but do not fall into one of the two aforementioned categories may not rent a cart at this time.
• In today’s (Friday) press conference at Marist College in Poughkeepsie, Governor Cuomo said he does not expect to see any deviations from his reopening plan. He indicated that he will not allow additional industries to reopen in earlier phases than already detailed, and the plan that is laid out in New York Forward was final.
• The Executive Order extending the eviction and foreclosure ban, along with closing schools for the remainder of the school year, has been released. A copy of the order can be found HERE.

If you have any questions regarding the information in this notification or any other business related concerns and suggestions, please email Contact@DutchessBNN.com. Please do NOT contact elected officials regarding information in this email as they are currently inundated with handling the government response to this crisis. This network was created to help coordinate responses and share the burden, and we ask that you please contact us with any questions or concerns so our elected officials can focus on their task at hand. Thank you for your continued support through this time.

… Dutchess County Executive Marcus J. Molinaro announced today the creation of two programs to help small local businesses left behind in the wake by the Small Business Administration’s (SBA) flawed roll-out of the Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) program and the Payroll Protection Program (PPP).

Dutchess County businesses became eligible for the EIDL under the State of Connecticut’s disaster declaration on March 18, 2020; days before the rest of New York State counties were eligible under New York State’s disaster declaration, yet many businesses struggle to get through the system and others were offered far less than what they needed.

New York became the epicenter of the COVID-19 pandemic and has been impacted far greater than any other state in the nation. The Hudson Valley has more reported deaths than the entire state of Texas.

Molinaro said, “The second wave of aid under the CARES Act should have been prioritized to the most affected states and the small business community; instead the second wave essentially became another free-for-all.”

With half the banks in Dutchess County reporting, more than $250 million in Small Business Administration (SBA) assistance has been processed for Dutchess County businesses. However, businesses in New York State, particularly small businesses, the hardest-hit state from this epidemic, have been essentially locked out of a fair share of federal assistance.

Based on a survey of Dutchess County’s business community, 65% of affected business have five or less full-time employees, and 76% employ part-time workers. The majority estimated losses between 75% and 100%.

“Our small local businesses that have been unable to secure assistance from the feds or the SBA need help now, or they may not survive or reopen,” noted Molinaro. “To support them, the County has developed a two-part plan, in partnership with our Think Dutchess Alliance for Business, that will help our most affected small businesses.”

Dutchess County Small Local Business Express Loan Program

At its next board meeting, the Dutchess County Local Development Corporation (LDC) is expected to vote on establishing a COVID-19 small business express loan program in partnership Community Capital New York (CCNY) that will help the smallest affected businesses in Dutchess County that have been unable to secure SBA assistance.

The zero interest* loan program is intended exclusively for small independent businesses located in Dutchess County that have not been able to secure SBA, PPP, or EIDL or any other COVID related aid and comes with an optional deferred payment plan and loan amounts up to $10,000.

Dutchess County COVID-19 Sales and Use Tax Relief Program

The Dutchess County Industrial Development Agency (IDA) will vote to establish a no-fee, fast tracked, COVID-19 Sales and Use Tax Relief Program to help local manufacturers expand capacity and produce much needed personal protection equipment. This pandemic has highlighted the nation’s extraordinary dependency on global supply chains from drugs and food, to technology and life safety equipment. This program will help attract and expand manufacturing opportunities in the local community and help end the chokehold nations like China have on the U.S. economy.

Frank Castella, Jr. President and CEO of Dutchess County Regional Chamber of Commerce said, “These programs are critical to narrow the gap our federal and state governments have left our small businesses in, and I applaud the County’s efforts to change the focus to not just think local, but make and buy local; reducing our dependency on other countries.”

Tim Dean, Chairman of the Dutchess County IDA and LDC said, “Our two public authorities have provided significant support to the not-for-profit community and private sector for many years, attracting billions in investment and retaining and creating thousands of jobs. Our programs and services have always adjusted to meet the needs of the county’s business community and we are proud to bring these two programs to the board for consideration.”

“We have been leading efforts to support our small businesses and family farms. I am grateful to Assistant County Executive Ron Hicks, the Industrial Development Agency and the Local Development Corporation for their big thinking, bold initiatives and tireless commitment to our employers and small business community,” concluded County Executive Molinaro.

The Dutchess County IDA and LDC will meet on Wednesday, May 13, 2020 at 8:00 a.m. to consider resolutions on both programs.

Hello BHA Residents,

I hope that you are all well and making it through these strange times the best you can.

Green Teen has come up with a protocol to hire teens to work in our gardens while following strict safety precautions such as only one youth gardener in a garden per shift, washing all of our tools daily, washing our hands hourly, wearing masks, etc.

Since growing food is an essential job we are proud to be growing food for our community.

I am attaching our application for the summer- please share it as you see fit.  There are some changes this season.

Applications can be emailed back to me at hgb4@cornell.edu.  They’re due on or before May 28th.

Update for Thursday, May 7, 2020:

• On May 13, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce will host U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) Administrator Emily Murphy and a panel of experts to summarize efforts designed to help small businesses remain economically viable through the COVID-19 pandemic. You can register for the webinar HERE.
• An updated FAQ document has been published by the SBA in regards to the Paycheck Protection Program. That document can be found HERE.
• The essential business list maintained by ESD has been updated to allow automotive sales in a regulated manner. The updated guidance can be found HERE.
• In today’s (Wednesday) press conference, Governor Cuomo announced the state was banning late payments or fees for residential or commercial tenants. Additionally, individuals would be able to use their security deposit for late rent. He also said a new Executive Order would be signed extending the eviction ban until August 20.
• In a secondary question regarding landlord concerns with this eviction ban, Governor Cuomo said he was working with the banks to provide relief to landlords regarding their mortgage payments.

If you have any questions regarding the information in this notification or any other business related concerns and suggestions, please email Contact@DutchessBNN.com. Please do NOT contact elected officials regarding information in this email as they are currently inundated with handling the government response to this crisis. This network was created to help coordinate responses and share the burden, and we ask that you please contact us with any questions or concerns so our elected officials can focus on their task at hand. Thank you for your continued support through this time.

Dutchess County Executive Marc Molinaro this afternoon hosted his eighth online COVID-19 Town Hall in as many weeks, informing residents about the latest news about the local impact of the pandemic, as well as the County’s measured plan for “Restarting Dutchess.”

In addition to answering residents’ questions, highlights from today’s discussion included:

• Following Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s announcement last week that schools statewide would not reopen for the remainder of the 2019-20 school year, County Executive Molinaro advocated for students in special education programs throughout the state. Proud to #ThinkDIFFERENTLY about those of every ability in Dutchess County and beyond, County Executive Molinaro sent a letter to the Governor, imploring the state to provide special education services throughout the summer to ensure these students receive the critical support they need to enhance their lives.
• Work on the County’s “Restarting Dutchess” initiative, a multi-pronged initiative to appropriately re-open County’s economy and Government operations, is underway. Dutchess County is working together with neighboring counties – Orange, Ulster, Putnam, Columbia, Sullivan and Greene – to plan and coordinate a regional approach to responsibly and deliberately reopen the local economy.
• The four executive-level work groups County Executive Molinaro convened to ensure a smooth and orderly transition to a “new normal” for Dutchess County Government and the local economy – the Local Government Team, County Government Team, Economic Development Team and Fiscal/Financial Team – began active work sessions this week.
• County Executive Molinaro also discussed the opening of local summer children’s camp programs this year, with the goal of enabling camps to open by July 1st (and based on state guidance/approval).   The Department of Behavioral & Community Health (DBCH) is developing guidance to assist summer camp programs develop their own health & safety plans – including the measures the facility will be taking to reduce the potential for the spread of coronavirus as well as the facility’s response to any positive cases that may occur. Programs will be required to submit these health & safety plans with their permit applications.   Summer day camps will be an important part of reopening the economy as they provide childcare options for many working parents.    

In observance of National Nurses Week (May 6-12th), County Executive Molinaro also commended the dedicated men and women of nursing – both within Dutchess County Government and the community – for their devotion to protecting local residents as National Nurses Week (May 6-12th) kicked off today. Never has nurses’ dedication been more evident than during the COVID-19 pandemic, and County Executive Molinaro thanked Vassar Brothers Medical Center nurses earlier this week for their commitment to patient health.

County Executive Molinaro will host another such COVID-19 Town Hall on Friday, May 8th at 2 p.m. As with all previous online town hall forums, the May 8th event will be broadcast live on the Dutchess County Government Facebook page, and American Sign Language interpreters will translate the conversation. Today’s Facebook Live conversation, as well as past online COVID-19 community conversations can be found on the County’s YouTube page.

Dutchess County Government continues to provide residents the most current information on its COVID-19 Community Impact Dashboard, as well as guidance on its website, dutchessny.gov/coronavirus, its Coronavirus hotline, (845) 486-3555, and its Facebook and Twitter accounts.