City of Edina to accept applications for small business loans

The City of Edina is accepting applications for forgivable small business loans.

According to a statement, the new Small Business Emergency Assistance Program will provide forgivable loans up to $10,000 to small businesses in Edina that are adversely impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.

The loans are meant to support operational expenses and will be forgiven if the business remains open for at least two years. Other restrictions apply.

To qualify for a loan, a small business must:

• Be located within a commercial or industrial zoning district in Edina.
• Have a physical brick-and-mortar location and be reliant on face-to-face customer traffic.
• Have at least two full-time employees and no more than 25 full-time employees at the Edina location.
• Have a maximum annual revenue of $1 million.

The funding for the loans is limited. Therefore, applications will be ranked based on the level of average foot traffic, the number of employees, length of the lease, tenure of business, business plan to recover, application to other programs, the extent of business disruption and residency of business owners.

To apply, complete the application online on Edina's Emergency loans page. The deadline is April 27 at 4:30 p.m.

The loans should be awarded by early May, according to the city.