In a partnership with the County of Halifax, the Halifax IDA is pleased to announce it is accepting applications for assistance to tourism sector businesses in Halifax County. Tourism based businesses have been some of the hardest impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic and the shutdown measures implemented to combat the virus.

To encourage businesses to continue their operations and help mitigate the negative impacts of the pandemic, the County, through the Halifax IDA, has established a system to award monetary grants to assist tourism-based businesses with costs incurred during the pandemic. These grants are intended to provide immediate financial relief for expenses already incurred by the businesses and are funded through an allocation of the Coronavirus Relief Funds provided through the Federal CARES Act. The Board of Supervisors has allocated $200,000 for the program.

For the purpose of this grant, tourism based businesses are defined as retail, hospitality, entertainment, employment and administrative services, or operating within a travel-related sector.

Receipts will be required for expenses that may include loss of revenues tied to events, Protective Personal Equipment, IT and non-IT equipment, IT and non-IT services, professional services, workplace modification, indoor and outdoor furniture and fixtures, training, staffing or other unanticipated expenditures needed to deal with the impact of COVID-19 business interruptions. Expenses must be qualifiable through historic documentation of past performance. Requests will total the value of submitted qualified receipts not to exceed seventy-five thousand dollars ($75,000).

Applications will be accepted through the Halifax IDA office and will be processed in the order received. Applications will be accepted through October 31, 2020. At the conclusion of the application period, grants will be awarded until all available funding is expended. Please note that the submission of an application does not guarantee approval as eligibility criteria must be met and all supporting documentation included.

Applications will be available through the Halifax IDA. More information, including a link to download the application, is available on this page. You may also call (434) 572-1734 to request more information.