ROSEVILLE, Calif. (KTXL) — The Roseville City Council is telling over a hundred businesses that took out emergency COVID-19 pandemic loans that they don’t have to pay the city back.
The city of Roseville moved quickly at the onset of the pandemic last spring offering hard-hit businesses no-interest loans to defray the added costs of staying open. About a million dollars in loans went to small local businesses rather than national chains.
“They are the mom-and-pops and they definitely don’t have the resources or funding to close and reopen,” said Roseville Economic Development Director Laura Matteoli.
Some 115 businesses had three years to pay back the city, but a recent sale of excess property allowed the city to forgive those loans entirely without going to Roseville’s general fund.
It’s a recognition that businesses continue to suffer.
Property manager Chris Airola told the city council his service calls dropped as costs to keep his staff protected increased. A $5,000 loan that he won’t have to repay was a lifesaver.
“These loans played a significant role in keeping my business afloat and keeping my 16-member staff employed,” Airola, who owns RentPros Property Management, said.
Businesses are still struggling, but the city is convinced the economic help paid dividends.
“We were able to retain about 1,092 jobs, so we count every single job. So, we’re really excited about that,” Matteoli told FOX40.
Because the loans were made to keep local business operating, those that closed permanently are still required to pay them back. One of them returned the money before closing for good and the door was left open to forgive the loans of a handful of others.
“To this day, we know of possibly two that might not be in business, so we think it was pretty successful,” Matteoli explained.
The money from the sale of excess property was supposed to go into a Citizens’ Benefit Fund to support nonprofit groups, but city officials said there’s a chance federal relief money could be used to replenish that fund.
