Small Business Administration opens recovery center in Dundalk

On Monday, the federal Small Business Administration opened an office in the Dundalk Village shopping center to offer support for businesses affected by the Francis Scott Key Bridge collapse.

Located at the Dundalk Renaissance Corporation at 11 Center Place, the SBA’s Business Recovery Center is open Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.

“You don’t need to bring any documents with you the first time you come in,” said SBA Public Affairs Specialist Yvette Jeffery. “We want to encourage as many people as possible to apply, and we’ll do the work of finding out if you’re eligible or not.”

Help is available for small businesses that have been impacted by the disaster — that means trucking companies that are losing work, restaurants that are losing customers, and any business affected by supply chain troubles.

Businesses as well as nonprofits can apply for a federal Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) of up to $2 million to pay for normal operating expenses like payroll and bills. The interest rate for businesses is 4%, and 3.25% for nonprofits, with terms of up to 30 years. The filing deadline is Dec. 30, 2024, but Jeffery encourages businesses to apply as soon as possible.

“Our business is to keep you in business,” Jeffery said.

Customer service representatives at the Business Recovery Center in Dundalk are available to answer questions and file applications.

“While no amount of business preparedness could have seen something like this coming, we are pleased to have been able to get this Economic Injury Disaster declaration so quickly,” said SBA’s Maryland District Director Stephen Umberger. “I want to thank Governor Moore for his hard work and response to this situation that allowed us to ensure local small businesses will now be able to access vital economic assistance.”

Eligibility is based on the financial impact of the disaster only and not on any actual property damage. Applicants may apply online and receive additional disaster assistance information at sba.gov/disaster. Applicants may also call SBA’s Customer Service Center at 800-659-2955 or email disastercustomerservice@sba.gov for more information on SBA disaster assistance. For people who are deaf, hard of hearing, or have a speech disability, please dial 7-1-1 to access telecommunications relay services.