COVID-19
Business resources related to COVID-19
We know that the COVID-19 outbreak is impacting our members and that some of you are seeing a hit to your bottom line. We’re here to help you access the tools, information, and resources you need right now. Our list of business resources is here to make things less painful for your companies and organizations.
April 6, 2021
The CLIMBER (Colorado Loans to Increase Mainstreet Business Economic Recovery) Loan Fund is a statewide program that will provide up to $250 million in working capital loans to Colorado small businesses through 2023. It will promote small businesses recovery, save jobs, and help support the Colorado economy.
Lenders, CDFIs, credit unions, and nonprofit lenders can participate and provide loans for their small business customers needing financial assistance.
Small businesses with 5-99 employees that were financially stable before the pandemic but now need help to survive may apply for working capital loans between $30,000 and $500,000. Below-market interest rates and a 1-year deferred payment option make the program a secure recovery option for small businesses. Learn more.
April 3, 2021
Executive Order D 2020 138 extended. All persons 10 years or older must wear a mask while entering or moving within a public indoor space until May 2, 2021 (additional details here).
- Download the required signage to place at your business entrance.
- FAQ regarding the exec order
- Of important note in the FAQ document: Employees can remove their masks if they are alone in a room, such as an office with the door closed, but they must wear masks in any “shared, indoor space that accommodates people outside your household,” including physically distanced cubicles.
February 6, 2021
El Paso County moved to Level Yellow in the state’s Dial 2.0 framework. Learn about the changes in the dial here and what it means for 5 Star Certification here.
January 27, 2021
Colorado Office of Economic Development & International Trade’s webinar on small business resources for technical support, language, assistance, and information to apply for state and federal programs is online here. Find the accompanying slide deck here.
January 25, 2021
Learn more about Colorado’s phased vaccination roll-out and what it means for El Paso County residents here. Read El Paso County Public Health’s weekly vaccination update here.
January 11, 2021
PPP (Paycheck Protection Program) loans resume today. If you received a PPP loan in the first round, use the Second Draw Borrower Application Form. If you are a new applicant that did not receive a PPP loan in the first round, you will use the First Draw Borrower Application Form (revised January 8, 2021).
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s Guide to Small Business COVID-19 Emergency Loans includes information on:
- the changes to the PPP and “Second Draw” PPP for small businesses who have exhausted their initial loan,
- other changes impact eligibility for initial PPP loans,
- the loan forgiveness process,
- and the tax treatment of PPP loans.
- Learn more.
October 23, 2020
Personal gatherings are limited to 10 people or less from no more than two households. See additional details regarding the public health order amendment here.
Telecommuting toolkit
Clocking in from your Kitchen Table. We’ve curated the best resources to help you keep business operating as usual, no matter where you and your employees are working from. From updating HR policies to managing remotely, we’re here to make it easier for you to run the central command from the home office.
Bundle Up for Small Businesses
The region’s Bundle Up for Small Businesses campaign includes a Cold Weather Toolkit to help you retrofit outdoor spaces for your customers and more. Get tips on energy conservation, access guidance and planning documents, and get ideas for marketing and promotional campaigns to keep your customers coming back all winter long.
You can help save the businesses you love, too. Be a Local Business Hero and help your favorite small businesses get through the pandemic. After all, not all heroes wear a cape – some wear a mask! Learn how you can help here.
Quick tips: a part of Bundle Up for Small Businesses
Pikes Peak SBDC business preparedness resources
The Pikes Peak Small Business Development Center maintains a comprehensive list of regional and state resources specifically focused on small business needs, including their Resiliency and Recovery Workshops, here.
Guidelines to reopening your business
COVID-19 Workplace Outbreak Guidance from EPC Public Health_June 2020
- Show your customers that you’re following the guidelines and doing your part to keep them safe. Download our “We are staying safe” window signs in partnership with El Paso County Public Health.
COVID-19 Hotline
We want to hear your story and connect you to resources. Please fill out this form to allow us to best connect you to a team member that can listen and assist.
Resources for the creative community
Cultural Office of the Pikes Peak Region’s COVID-19 Resources
Legal resources
The State of Colorado has partnered with the legal community to create a volunteer program designed to connect attorneys with Colorado businesses in need to help them make informed decisions and get back on their feet.
From financial aid compliance to leasing arrangements and business liability, small businesses across our state face complex challenges. Most small businesses need legal resources and expertise to make informed decisions.
The task force will work with the 15 small business development centers (SBDC) around the state including the Pikes Peak SBDC. The task force is using recent survey data gathered by the SBDC’s to design need-based webinars and match volunteer lawyers to small businesses.
The Colorado Lawyers Committee is matching volunteer attorneys with small businesses in need of assistance. This organization is a nonpartisan consortium of 80 Colorado law firms dedicated to creating and increasing opportunities for children, the poor, and other disadvantaged communities through pro bono legal advocacy, negotiation, and litigation.
According to the Office of State Planning and Budgeting, Colorado’s tourism industry, which supports many of the state’s small businesses, is expected to rebound more slowly than other sectors. By assisting small businesses, the task force hopes to indirectly support the more than 400,000 Coloradans who have filed for unemployment due to the pandemic.
Businesses interested in applying for assistance, or volunteers willing to help, can go to coloradocovidrelief.org.
Business reimbursement for Paid Leave tax credit for employee’s impacted by COVID-19
Eligible employers can now use Form 7200, Advance Payment of Employer Credits Due to COVID-19, to request an advance payment of tax credits. Employers must retain records supporting each employee’s leave to substantiate the claim for receiving payment of the advance credit (see How to Claim the Credits on the IRS website).
Unemployment resources
If you are an employer facing hard decisions right now, please consider the Colorado Department of Labor and Employment’s Workshare Program as an alternative to layoffs. The program allows your employees to keep working, but with fewer hours. While an employee is working fewer hours, he or she may be eligible to collect part of his or her regular unemployment benefits. The Pikes Peak Workforce Center’s Rapid Response team can also assist you.
If you are an employee that has been recently laid off, you may be eligible to claim unemployment benefits through the Colorado Department of Labor and Employment. These bi-weekly benefit payments help you focus on your path to reemployment and help lessen the negative impact that unemployment has on the economy. Learn more and start your claim here. Find a full list of FAQs here. Find a layoff-to-employment planner here.
Job resources
Check out our jobs website to help you access resources and job listings available in Colorado Springs. We’re here to help you get back to work. Learn more.
Mental health resources
- FEMA Crisis Counseling Program through Aspen Pointe
Safeguard your workplace
We all know to wipe down and clean our workspaces in an effort to keep employees and customers safe. Professional mitigation companies, like our following members, can help you with proactive bio-remediation:
- Belfor Property Restoration Info on their COVID-19 services here.
- Restoration 1 Colorado Springs Info on their COVID-19 services here.
- SERVPRO of North Central Colorado Springs Info on their COVID-19 services here.
- SERVPRO of South Colorado Springs
- United Water Restoration Group Info on their COVID-19 services here.
Additionally, the El Paso County Environmental Department has the following guidelines:
EPA guidance for disinfecting public places
CDC guidance for reopening businesses after a prolonged shutdown
Doing our part to keep our community safe
Rest assured we are working behind the scenes to expand our educational, networking, and business support programs into virtual platforms. We continue to closely monitor the evolving pandemic and its impact on our signature and networking events. Under Governor Polis’s new guidelines, it clearly states that there be “no gathering over 10 people”. Until this changes, we will refrain from any and all physical gatherings of members for the purpose of networking or updating our members on our program of work. All events are currently being delivered in virtual or hybrid formats.
