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Join Us: Support the ‘Save Our Storefronts’ Campaign and Legislation for Small Business Relief
| The plight of local small businesses and non-profit institutions right now is devastating. Forced to close or limit access due to the pandemic, many have lost income and shut down permanently. Storefronts are emptying, harming communities, neighbors, and property owners. Village Preservation is working with a coalition of local merchants, non-profits, elected officials, and property owners to address this problem. The ‘Save Our Storefronts’ (S.O.S.) coalition has proposed legislation, introduced by State Senator Brad Hoylman and Assemblymember Harvey Epstein (S.8865/A.10901), that would help cover the cost of rent for COVID-19 affected businesses and non-profits using State and Federal funds, while requiring the small business or non-profit and the property owner to share the burden of the shortfall. Certified COVID-19 affected tenants would have to pay the lesser of 20% of their income or 1/3 of their rent, property owners would have to forgive 20% of the rent, and the State, using federal funds, would pay the remainder. |
| It’s a fair and equitable solution where we all do our part to ensure that local small businesses and non-profits can survive this time and our storefronts don’t become ghost towns. Watch our recent press conference announcing the roll out of this plan here and read the press release here. Find out more about the Save Our Storefronts Campaign and how you can be a part of it here. |