COVID-19 Relief Grants for Tourism and Municipalities Awarded

Another round of COVID-19 Relief grants was approved at last Wednesday’s Board of Commissioners meeting. The money for these grants comes from Act 24 of 2020, signed by Governor Wolf on May 29, 2020, which provides $625 million in federal Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act funding to Pennsylvania counties by means of block grants, administered through the Department of Community and Economic Development (DCED).  Under this legislation, Franklin County received $14 million to help address the impacts and critical needs created by the COVID-19 pandemic.

“The full $14 million in CARES Act funding allotted to Franklin County will be used to mitigate the impact of the pandemic on our county and communities,” said Commissioner Chairman Dave Keller.

Last month the commissioners awarded $5.5 million in COVID-19 Relief grants to small businesses and $1.1 million to non-profit agencies.

CARES funding guidelines allow for grants to support economic development organizations, small businesses, tourism businesses, nonprofit agencies, behavioral health and substance use disorder treatment, and broadband internet deployment.

A team of county and legal representatives reviewed the following COVID-19 Relief Grant applications for recommendation to the Board of Commissioners.

Tourism COVID-19 Relief Grant

There were 12 entities that applied representing hotels and inns, campgrounds, theaters, a local tourism agency, and a museum site. All 12 applicants were awarded a portion of their request based on their allowable expenses and the supporting documents submitted for review. Money received from other grant sources was deducted from the allowable expenses so that no entity was able to be paid more than once for the same budget items. The requests ranged from $7,243.40 to $1,029,926.50 with the total amount of requests totaling $2,600,686.91. The total amount recommended is not to exceed $267,993.85 with awarded amounts ranging from $1,739.39 to $111,923.99. 

COVID-19 Relief Grant for Municipalities

Of 8 local municipalities that applied, 6 were eligible for funding to cover costs associated with emergency services, wages, personal protective equipment, sanitization materials, etc. The following municipalities will be receiving funding: Borough of Chambersburg, Borough of Mercersburg, Borough of Waynesboro, Fannett Township, Greene Township, and Quincy Township. Award amounts range from up to $1,289.99 to $895,989.11 with a total award amount of $1,051,352.15.

Distribution of grant funds is underway and awards are going out to entities across the county. To view the COVID-19 Relief Grants information dashboards, including maps, visit https://arcg.is/1CzDfX.

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