More details are beginning to emerge about the $900 Billion Stimulus Bill, including the re-opening of applications for the Paycheck Protection Program.

Last Friday, the Small Business Administration and the Treasury released a press release about application openings as well as new guidance.

Read the entire January 8th press release here. In it, the new guidance released includes:

Additionally, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce updated their Guide to Small Business COVID-19 Emergency Loans.

Last week, the Batavia City Council approved the updating of TIFs, which allows the mixed-use development located at the corner of Wilson Street and Washington Street to move forward. The City of Batavia is working on a website page that will provide ongoing updates about the project and to answer frequently asked questions. We will share this information with you as soon as it is available. Going forward, the Batavia Chamber will work closely with the City of Batavia and Batavia MainStreet to communicate updates about construction, potential road closures, utility concerns and more.

The Batavia Police Department continues to warn the public about the IDES scam. This link will take you to the IDES page to file a complaint of Identity Theft. Other suggestions:

Scroll down for our new events and other content, including our Member Insider featuring Roman Seckel.

Events coming this week are a morning networking event and an update on the PPP program with Bil Papp. A new Boot Camp series begins on Thursday, Jan. 21. On Friday, Jan. 22, at 9:30 a.m., chamber members are invited to join Rep. Dan Ugaste on a Zoom meeting. He will speak about where things are heading in Springfield and make us aware of bills that may impact your businesses. The Representative plans to open the meeting up to other issues that you'd like to address. A flyer and registration link will be available soon, please check our website for updated information and to register.

Many of you have been viewing Mayor Schielke’s weekly videos. After a couple of weeks off, here is the link to watch the Friday, Jan. 8th recording.

We continually update our home page, bataviachamber.org when new resources and information comes out. Also, check our calendar for new events from us and the community.

One thing that has not changed for 2021 is that our local businesses need all of our support – please remember to shop and dine local! As always, we are now, and will be in the future, here for you.

Welcome to this week's Member Insider! We are excited for you to learn more about your fellow Batavia Chamber members. This week, we continue the series learning about our hard-working Board of Directors. To gain insight into these esteemed members, we are asking them to answer a total of 20 questions.

This week, we’ll learn a bit more about Roman Seckel, a partner with Drendel & Jansons Law Group. Roman practices in various areas of the law, including family law, contract disputes and municipal work since joining the firm in 2005. Drendel & Jansons Law Group has been a member of the Batavia Chamber of Commerce for more than 25 years. He began serving on the board of directors in 2016 and has served as chairman of the board. To read the entire post - and trust us - you want to get all the inside information, head over to our blog: http://bit.ly/RomanSeckel

Support this week's featured restaurants (below) by ordering carryout from them. Make certain you let the restaurant know what side of town you are from for tracking purposes. Keep up with the latest by joining the We Side with Batavia Restaurants Facebook group.

2021 is a great time to try new activities, benefits or utilize marketing opportunities with the Batavia Chamber of Commerce! Members can market an event, new product or service, special deals or other opportunities such as a job fair with a purchased eBlast. This is a no-cost benefit at some membership levels. The flyer below explains more. Contact us today if you'd like to reserve an eBlast or package of eBlasts and get your business noticed! Need help? Let us know, it would be our pleasure to assist you.

New event! Join us on Thursday, Jan. 14 for an update on the recently passed Paycheck Protection Program. Register today!

We've launched a series of educational Boot Camp sessions, along with our fellow chamber partners! Join us each Thursday at 9 a.m. for a new topic. First up, is getting your elevator speech in order - definitely a necessity for networking events. Register for the January 21 event today!

Batavia RSVP (Retired and Senior Volunteer Program) is an all-volunteer, local non-profit organization formed in 1988 to provide a variety of senior services to Batavia based residents, age 65 and older. Our goal is to provide services so our senior population can live independently for as long as they so desire. Batavia RSVP provides several programs for seniors living within the boundaries of the City of Batavia; the Batavia Park District and Batavia Township.

These services include a Medical Assistance Program (MAP) which provides payment assistance for prescription medication co-pays and deductibles for income qualifies seniors (annual income qualifications $35,000 per individual, $45,000 per couple). MAP also includes a $200 per person annual stipend for dental services and hearing aid battery replacements (MAP income qualifications apply). Batavia RSVP also provides smoke and CO detectors and installations; drive seniors to medical appointments; and, in conjunction with the Batavia Fire Department, install lock boxes (secure emergency access into homes) and help with annual smoke detector battery replacements. RSVP can be reached at (630) 406-9993 or visit the website bataviarsvp.org/.

Click here for this flyer in Spanish.