CORONAVIRUS / COVID-19 UPDATES
These are unprecedented times and our Chamber is first and foremost a community connector. It is always important to rely on our greater network of organizations, departments and contacts - and times like this prove those built relationships incredibly valuable. Therefore, we will not take time to replicate efforts but instead share the amazing resources others have compiled and add to them as we go. This page will be a place of local, regional and state updates and info sharing as we all navigate these challenging days and weeks.
The Chamber will continue to make decisions on programming in weekly/monthly rotations and updates will be emailed as necessary.
Thank you to the following regional partners for sharing their resources: Hanover County and Economic Development, Town of Ashland, Retail Merchants, ChamberRVA, the Regional Economic Development Partnership team, Chickahominy Health District, local Elected Officials, Market Ashland Partnership, Dominion Energy Innovation Center, Downtown Ashland Association and others.
Please keep in mind that information continues to change quickly; we will do our best to keep this page current.
FREE PPE TOOL KITS FOR REOPENING If your business needs Personal Protection Equipment to reopen, please contact us about a PPE Starter Tool Kit. We have a handful of Kits remaining. PPE Starter Tool Kits will include: Facemasks, Gloves, Hand Sanitizer, Decals & signs indicating compliance with safety recommendations, Important Saftey Information, and more. This PPE Starter Tool Kit program is an RVA Regional effort. Richmond region business associations, community organizations, and governmental leaders have come together to form ForwardRVA - a coalition focused on creating an innovative reopening, safe operations and future planning. The Hanover Chamber of Commerce is proud to be part of this effort. | Recursos para COVID-19 en español Haga un clic aquí para descargar una carpeta de documentos incluyendo información sobre las pruebas de COVID-19, información básica del virus, guías para las fases y otros recursos. (Please click to download a folder of documents including information about covid-19 testing, virus basics, phase guidelines and other resources) |
The full text of Executive Order Seventy-two, established December 10, 2020 and in effect until January 31, 2021 is available here.
FAQ on this EO from the Governor's office:
FUNDING LINKS
**SBA Payroll Protection Plan - Additional PPP funds have been approved. Applications will be made through local banks who are certified SBA Lenders beginning the week of January 11, 2021. Changes and clarifications to this program and the application process continue; please stay in contact with your local bankers.
Rebuild Virginia Funding - *Program Expanded and extended! Additional funding, announced on Dec 29, 2020, will bring the program total to $120 million and will enable more than 300 small business and nonprofit organizations that applied before the last round of funding was exhausted in early December to receive grants. Eligible applicants that are still in the pipeline have been notified via email that their applications have been re-opened. Qualifying businesses and non-profits can now receive up to three times their eligible monthly expenses, plus COVID related expenses, up to a maximum of $100,000 (expanded from $10,000). Businesses and nonprofits are eligible; they must certify that they will use the funding only for recurring expenses and that the grant will not be used to cover the same expenses as CARES Act funding.
The Town of Ashland is working to assist small business as they begin opening during phase 1 and 2. The Safety Enhancement Grant is a program of our Economic Development Authority, and intended to help businesses in Town as they serve the public under the new guidelines established by the Governor in Phase 1 or Phase 2 of the state’s reopening plan. This program is open to any business in the Town of Ashland who is current on their taxes and business license. Applications are considered on a rolling basis, and we encourage interested businesses to reach out to us if they have any questions about the process. Town website https://www.ashlandva.gov/CivicAlerts.aspx?AID=402
Safety Grant Overview
Safety Grant Application
U.S. Small Business Association (SBA) Disaster Assistance Loans, EIDL - could offer disaster relief loans of up to $2 million for merchants and businesses adversely impacted by the Coronavirus (COVID-19); all of VA is included. Applications are submitted directly to the SBA website. Note: Applications accepted on a rolling basis until all funds are depleted.
Hanover Business Resiliency Grant - Hanover County is offering up to $5,000 per business in recovery funding for companies with 50 or fewer FTE employees. Unanimously approved by the Board of Supervisors and the Hanover County Economic Development Authority, this Small Business Resiliency Grant program is made possible by federal funding under the CARES Act. The BOS has made a total of $300,000 available to small businesses.
GENERAL UPDATES
Resources from Virginia Governor's Office
Hanover County Economic Development
Frequent updates to numerous local and regional and state resources with a focus on business news and tools.
https://www.hanovervirginia.com/grow-your-business/covid-19-information-and-resources/
Unemployment & Hiring
Chickahominy Health District - Hotline: 804-365-3340 to answer health questions related to COVID-19. The District includes Hanover, New Kent, Goochland and Charles City http://www.vdh.virginia.gov/chickahominy/. As a note, King William is part of the Three Rivers Health District http://www.vdh.virginia.gov/three-rivers/.
Hanover County Updates - Closings, modified services and alert information for many offices including Circuit Court, Library, Parks & Rec, DMV Select, Jail and others.
https://www.hanovercounty.gov/1024/COVID-19-Coronavirus
Hanover residents who have questions or need specific assistance can get help by calling one of four important County phone numbers:
Hanover residents that are facing financial challenges are also reminded to apply for food assistance (SNAP), temporary financial assistance (TANF) or health insurance benefits (Medicaid) through Hanover Social Services. For more information on these programs you may call the Social Services Call Center at 1-855-635-4370 or apply on line at www.Commonhelp.Virginia.Gov
Town of Ashland Updates - Posts and updates shared on their website often
Sheriff's Office Updates -
U.S. Chamber of Commerce - Since the Hanover Chamber is a association member of the US Chamber, all of their resources, detailed blogs, webinars and conference calls are available to our local chamber members individually.
Working from Home
As many of us transition and continue to work remotely or work from home, we may encounter a few new challenges. Here are a few resources on safe teleworking, electronically speaking:
IBM cloud struggles
https://www.datacenterdynamics.com/en/news/ibm-cloud-struggles-suffers-small-outage-dallas/
Microsoft and other clouds remote work struggles
https://www.theregister.co.uk/2020/03/12/remote_work_struggles/
Dangers of & Fixes for RDP without VPN (Remote Desktop Protocol without a Virtual Private Network); we suggest you connect with you IT provider for more on this topic. (Don't have an IT provider? Check our member directory.)
https://www.itprotoday.com/compute-engines/dangers-using-rdp-without-vpn
https://www.ericom.com/whatis/rdp/
https://www.mcafee.com/blogs/other-blogs/mcafee-labs/rdp-security-explained/
Supporting our local Restaurants, Personal Services and Companies
Click over to our Coronavirus Member News page for updates submitted by our members. Many of our eateries are offering take-away service, retailers are still accepting online orders (often with special discounts) and many services (nonprofits too) are continuing to operate as best as possible. We, along with area partners, are working on a listing of various food, retail and services in the Hanover/Ashland area. Consider supporting local vendors whenever possible. Check our Member Directory and contact places directly!
9097 Atlee Station Road, Suite 117, Mechanicsville VA 23116 804-442-2093 | info@hanoverchamberva.com |
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