St. Louis Development Corporation Completes Small Business Grant Program, Deploying $4.5 Million to 900 St. Louis Businesses
St. Louis, Mo. (June 14, 2023) – As of May 30, 2023 — a short 14 months after launching the Small Business Grant Fund — the St. Louis Development Corporation (SLDC) is pleased to announce 900 businesses in all 14 wards across the City of St. Louis have each received a $5,000 grant. With $4.5 million invested in 72 of 79 neighborhoods, the program, which was designed to assist small businesses adversely impacted by COVID-19, is now complete.
“When our small businesses succeed, our neighborhoods succeed,” said Mayor Tishaura O. Jones. “This successful program is yet another way St. Louis is deploying our resources to strengthen communities across our city and support the local small businesses that residents know and love.”
“The Small Business Grant Program directly infused much-needed capital into businesses and we are proud that 76 percent of funds were deployed into HUD Qualified Census Tracts (QCTs) in North and South City, which means the dollars reached parts of the city that have long been neglected and traditionally face challenges accessing capital,” said Neal Richardson, President & CEO of St. Louis Development Corporation.
The grant funds were allowed to be used to help small businesses with payroll, rent, mortgage interest, utilities, inventory, COVID-19 supplies, personal protective equipment and cleaning interior/exterior to sanitize facilities. Businesses with 25 or fewer employees and whose primary place of business is in the City of St. Louis were eligible to apply. Small businesses were presumed disproportionately impacted by the pandemic if they are operating in a QCT within the city limits. If not located in a QCT, businesses must have been adversely impacted by COVID-19.
This program is funded in whole or in part with Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds (SLFRF) passed through the St. Louis City Community Development Administration.
Grant Recipient Data and Contacts
Click here for a Google map of all grant recipients.
To view number of grants awarded by QCT, Ward or Neighborhood, click here.
If you would like to speak with business owners who benefitted from the Small Business Grant Program, please contact:
Higgs Taping and Painting | Theodore Higginbotham | (314) 496-6593
Riverview West Florissant Development Corp. | Christiana Hampton | (314) 382-9000
Devi's Extended Care | DeNay Reynolds | (618) 531-9003
Bar MC | Michele Douglas | (314) 728-3223
Doc Dash | Kimberly Denise St. Clair | (314) 363-5944