Cecil County Office of Economic Development Introduces the Hotel Relief Grant
ELKTON, MD. — Beginning Monday, February 1st, the Cecil County Office of Economic Development (CCOED) will be accepting applications for the County’s Hotel Relief Grant program. Cecil County received $267,083 from the Maryland Economic Development Assistance Fund to help hotels, motels, inns, and bed & breakfasts within the County that have been adversely impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. The amount of individual Hotel Relief Grant awards will be determined by the total number of qualified applicants and the number of rooms of each business.
“We are excited to have relief funding to help one of the hardest hit segments of the business community” said Steven Overbay, Director of the Office of Economic Development. “Every little bit helps and we are diligently working to get it in the hands of the businesses as quickly as possible.”
The grant funds can only be used by a qualified business to cover normal operating costs, such as rent, payroll, job training, taxes, debt service or for the purchase of PPE, sanitization services or other COVID-19 related costs. Grant funds cannot be used to pay for items outside of a business’ normal operating costs – prohibited costs include the purchase of equipment and soft goods, infrastructure improvements, technology upgrades, and all other costs not directly related to COVID-19 prevention. Businesses must spend the awarded funding on eligible expenses incurred between January 1, 2021 and May 15, 2021.
To qualify, the business must:
- Be located in Cecil County;
- Contributed to Cecil County Hotel Rental Tax and/or paid Sales and Use Tax to the State of Maryland;
- Own, rent or lease a permanent hotel, motel, inn, or B&B that was open to the public for accommodations as of November 1, 2019 and, if currently closed, reopens by March 31, 2021;
- Demonstrate a reduction in year-over-year gross revenue of at least 25% for the period of April – November 2019 compared to April – November 2020 (if the business opened later than April 1, 2019, but before Nov. 1, 2019, compare the months open in 2019 with those same months in 2020);
- Have a minimum of 10 sleeping rooms, or if bed and breakfast, has at least five sleeping rooms;
- Be in good standing with Cecil County and the State of Maryland; and
- Not currently be in default on any loans from Cecil County or delinquent on any taxes, fees, or other charges owed to Cecil County.
“This is an important program that can and will assist many of our Cecil County hotels, inns, and bed & breakfasts who have been adversely affected by the coronavirus pandemic,” said County Executive Danielle Hornberger. “I encourage all eligible establishments to apply for this funding opportunity, and I commend our Office of Economic Development and Finance Department staff for continuing to provide services and support to our small businesses and their employees.”
Applicants should thoroughly review the eligibility criteria and application process for the grant prior to applying. The Frequently Asked Questions and Application Form can be found at www.cecilbusiness.org. The grant opens at 8:00 a.m. (EST) on Monday, February 1, 2021. Applications will NOT be accepted prior to this time. The deadline to apply is 4:30 p.m. on Monday, February 15, 2021. Submission of an incomplete or inaccurate application may result in ineligibility for program funding. If you have carefully reviewed the program eligibility guidelines and determined your business does not qualify for this funding source, please visit https://govstatus.egov.com/md-coronavirus-businessto Learn more about what federal, state, or county legislative district I am in and the name of my legislatorsto open the Tourism Award Process Powerpoint to be redirected to the State of Maryland’s Coronavirus Information for Business website. This site is updated with new information frequently and features federal and state funding programs as well as the Maryland Unemployment Insurance portal.
If assistance is needed with assessing eligibility or compiling the needed documents for the application, please first consult with your financial or legal advisers. You may also email questions to covidreliefquestions@ccgov.org.
Media Contact:
Kevin Alkinburg
Public Information Officer
Cecil County Government
KAlkinburg@ccgov.org
