St. Pete Standard

The City of St. Petersburg has announced that the application period for the South St. Petersburg CRA Microfund Program is now open. This program aims to provide funding and support to businesses located in the South St. Petersburg Community Redevelopment Area (CRA). Through personalized capacity building and education, mentoring, and networking opportunities, the program enables businesses to make targeted improvements without the need for upfront capital.

This is the second application period for the Microfund Program, following a successful round earlier this year. Over $1.35 million will be distributed to more than 50 diverse small businesses and startups in the coming months. Craig Latimer of Lat & Sons Family Hair Care, a past recipient of the Microfund, praised the program, stating, "I think that it's a great way for anyone with a small business to become part of the business community. If you grow your business, it grows our business and then it grows St. Pete. It gets no better than that."

Interested applicants can submit their applications starting from Thursday, December 14, 2023, at 10 a.m. until Monday, January 15, 2024. Those who applied for the previous cohort but were not awarded funding will need to reapply. To fulfill a mandatory prerequisite, applicants must attend a Microfund 101 Workshop or Webinar. Only completed applications that meet this requirement will be considered.

Resources, FAQs, and toolkits for interested applicants can be found on the program's website at www.stpete.org/Microfund. Eligible applicants in this application period will be placed into three upcoming cohorts in 2024, with each cohort accommodating 45 businesses. Placement in the cohorts will be on a first-come, first-placed basis until all spots are filled. Once the maximum number of participants is reached, any remaining applicants may apply for future funding rounds, and a wait list will be utilized to fill available spots.

To be eligible, businesses must be located within the South St. Petersburg Community Redevelopment Area (CRA) for at least six months. The CRA, which spans 7.4 square miles, was established to promote reinvestment in housing and neighborhoods, commercial corridors, business development, and education and workforce development. It encompasses Greater Childs Park, over 20 neighborhood and business associations, and two Florida Main Street Districts. A boundary map of the CRA can be found at www.stpete.org/cra.

Graduates of the Microfund Program may be eligible to submit an application for a different business three years after their original program participation. Spending plans will be developed to ensure that the deployed funding meets program eligibility standards.

For more information about the South St. Petersburg CRA Microfund Program and how to apply, visit www.stpete.org/cra. Don't miss this opportunity to receive funding and support for your business in the South St. Petersburg area.

Click this link to access more information: https://www.stpete.org/news_detail_T30_R845.php