Resource Roundup: August 25th 2021

Resource Roundup: August 25th, 2021

Pioneer Square Business Stakeholders-

The Alliance for Pioneer Square team is working diligently to keep the Pioneer Square community informed regarding new resources and opportunities available to them. This roundup is part of a series of weekly messages capturing new resources and opportunities. Find each weekly email to date on our website.

*Please see this roundup's new resources and opportunities highlighted in RED*

What's Happening

*NEW* Gov. Jay Inslee has announced an expansion of the statewide mask mandate to all individuals, regardless of vaccination status. Under this order, every person in Washington must wear a face covering when they are in a place that is generally accessible to any person from outside their household, subject to specific exceptions and exemptions. All public spaces across the state, including retail stores, malls, restaurants, grocery stores, and public-facing offices, are affected. Read the rest of the story on the governor's Medium page .

*NEW* Last week, Washington State Secretary of Health Umair A. Shah, M.D., MPH, amended Order 20-03 requiring face masks for everyone over five years of age in most public indoor settings regardless of vaccination status. The updated order went into effect on Monday, August 23rd. These include places like grocery stores, malls, gyms, and community centers. Masks are strongly recommended in crowded outdoor settings like sporting events, fairs, and concerts where physical distancing is not possible.

There are some exceptions to the indoor mask requirement, including:

Children under age five years of age. However, children age two to four years old can wear a mask under close adult supervision.
People with a medical or mental health condition or disability that prevents them from wearing a mask
Fully vaccinated workers who are working alone with no public face-to-face interaction or in an area not accessible to the public.
Athletes who play indoor sports and who are actively engaged in competition or practice (masks are still required on sidelines and in team meetings)
Small indoor private gatherings when everyone is vaccinated
Children under two years of age should not wear a face covering due to the risk of suffocation

Find more information here.

*NEW* As COVID cases rise across the region, the list of Seattle dining and drinking destinations requiring vaccination proof for their customers grows by the day. A crowdsourced list called Seattle Safe Night Out has been created to capture restaurant and bar proof of vaccination policies. If you are a restaurant or bar operator, you are invited to submit your proof of vaccination policy to the Seattle Safe Night Out list.

Worker and Business Resources

*NEW* The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) is launching a streamlined application portal to allow borrowers with Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans of $150,000 or less through participating lenders to apply for forgiveness directly through the SBA. Learn more by clicking here.

*NEW* Humanities Washington is currently accepting applications for Sustaining the Humanities through the American Rescue Plan (SHARP) grants. Intended for Washington State nonprofit organizations that provide humanities programming, these grants will help those organizations respond to and recover from the effects of the coronavirus. Applications must be submitted by September 23rd. Learn more and apply here.

*NEW* Interested in how to protect your trade name and brand with intellectual property? Learn the ways trademark law can protect and enhance your business. Learn the basics of trademark law from students with the University of Washington School of Law's Entrepreneurial Law Clinic with a free virtual workshop on Thursday, September 9, 2021, 5 – 6 p.m. Click here to register. For a list of other workshops and programs, take a look at the full Library to Business calendar of events.

*NEW* Register for these upcoming programs and webinars from OneEastside SPARK. These webinars are complimentary and may be viewed live or watch a video later. You may also view on-demand recordings of past webinars.

*NEW* OED and the Urban League of Metropolitan Seattle have partnered to connect Black-owned small businesses with local high school students to develop the online infrastructure needed to improve one’s online presence, marketing, business operations, and expand one’s customer base. Students will learn the skills and earn certifications that equip them to design and build professional level websites that accomplish the unique vision and goals of individual business owners and their establishments at no cost to the business. Interested businesses can apply here and the application deadline is September 1. To learn more and view examples of websites produced, visit the Youth Web Design program website. For questions, please contact Anisa Khoshbakhtian or call (206) 684-8090.

*NEW* The statewide plastic bag ban will be in effect on October 1st. The Washington State Department of Ecology created a downloadable and printable toolkit that provides information about the new law to both customers and workers. Encouraging patrons before then to remember to bring their reusable bags is one of the best ways to get ready. This toolkit is translated into 17 languages and is formatted for accessibility.

*NEW* The Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT) is continuing to give out free ORCA Recovery Cards to food service and grocery workers in the CID and Pioneer Square. The ORCA Recovery Card allows the cardholder to take free, unlimited rides on public transit until December 31, 2021. They will be tabling at Occidental Square (117 S Washington St, Seattle, WA) on the following dates:
August 30, 10am-1pm
August 31, 3pm-6pm

Stop by SDOT’s table to pick up your card after preregistering by filling out this SurveyMonkey form. Employers or managers can preregister and pick up cards for their staff by providing proof of employment and a list of employees they are picking up cards for. For more information and eligibility requirements, visit the Recovery Card website, email [email protected], or text or call (206) 256-6722.

The U.S. Small Business Administration announced extended deferment periods for all disaster loans, including the COVID-19 Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) program, until 2022. This means:
All SBA disaster loans made in calendar year 2020, including COVID-19 EIDL, will have a first payment due date extended from 12-months to 24-months from the date of the note.
All SBA disaster loans made in calendar year 2021, including COVID-19 EIDL, will have a first payment due date extended from 12-months to 18-months from the date of the note.

Find more information on the announcement here.

Reopening Resources

The Pioneer Square Business Owners & Managers Facebook group is an opportunity for business owners and retailers to participate in an online forum and share resources, support, and stories. We invite you to join group and connect with other neighborhood businesses. Click here to join the Pioneer Square Business Owners and Managers Facebook page.

The Association of Washington Businesses has created a hub where businesses can get access to PPE and other resources to assist with reopening. The site is free to use and available to all Washington businesses.

Neighborhood Advocacy

*NEW* Join the Metropolitan Improvement District (MID) and the Seattle Police Department (SPD) for a one and a half hour de-escalation training on September 21st from 1:30a-3p. The de-escalation training we'll be providing is going to be an in-depth training program that teaches how to recognize, reduce, and manage aggressive behavior. RSVP here.

*NEW* Join the The Alliance for Pioneer Square for the following one hour candidate forums:

Seattle City Mayor candidate Bruce Harrell on Monday, September 13th from 12-1pm. Register here.
Seattle City Council Position 9 candidate Nikkita Oliver on Monday, September 27th from 12-1pm. Register here.
Seattle City Attorney Candidate Nicole Thomas-Kennedy on Tuesday, October 5th from 12-1pm. Register here.

Additional Resources

Between weekly messages please review our website, which features an in-depth series of resources intended to assist small business owners, managers, and employees impacted by the COVID-19 virus crisis, along with public health recommendations.

Driving to Pioneer Square? Check out mobile-friendly DowntownSeattleParking.com for parking locations throughout the neighborhood.

Please let us know how we might best support you. Feel free to contact any of us with comments, questions, suggestions, or concerns.

Sincerely,

The Alliance Team

ALLIANCE FOR PIONEER SQUARE