City of Hagerstown CDBG Microenterprise Grant Program (Maryland)

The City of Hagerstown is currently accepting applications from for-profit microenterprise businesses for its Microenterprise Grant Program.

Donor Name: City of Hagerstown

State: Maryland

City: Hagerstown

Type of Grant: Grant

Deadline: Ongoing

Size of the Grant: $5,000

Details:

Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Consolidated Plan, the City identified the need to improve and expand employment opportunities for low-to-moderate income persons in the City of Hagerstown. The Microenterprise Grant Program was developed as a means to address this opportunity for growth as well as to assist with the following goals:

Support and encourage new job creation, job retention, and employment and job training services for low-to-moderate income residents
Plan and promote the revitalization of vacant commercial spaces; and,
Support business and commercial growth through business stabilization and/or business expansion.

Funding Information

The minimum grant amount for this program is $2,500 and the maximum request is $5,000.

Eligible Uses of Funding

Grant funding may be used for the following purposes:

Acquisition of business equipment
Purchase of inventory
Necessary fixed assets (machinery, IT equipment, vehicles)
Professional services including marketing and business promotion
Technological infrastructure and upgrades
Entrepreneurial training
Operational expenses including payroll, utilities, rent/mortgage (for commercial locations)

Eligibility Criteria

A business owner/business may qualify for the Microenterprise Grant Program if they meet the following eligibility criteria:

Business must be located in the corporate boundaries of the City of Hagerstown;
- Businesses that qualify as a “roving” business (i.e. a mobile business that travels from client to client without a particular location) must have at least two-thirds of their business occur in the corporate boundaries of the City of Hagerstown;
Business must have five (5) or fewer total employees including the owner(s) in order qualify as a Microenterprise. For the purposes of this program there is no distinction between a part-time and a full-time employee in the headcount for the business;
Business must be a private, for-profit business;
Business must be in good standing with the City and State of Maryland;
Business must be in compliance with all applicable City of Hagerstown regulations including the Land Management Code; and,
Business must be established and operating for at least 12 months at time of application
- Businesses that do not meet the above timeframe may still apply for funding, however, the applicant is required to submit a business plan and provide documentation of a consultation with a business counseling service (Small Business Development Council, SCORE, etc…) in addition to all other application requirements.

Eligible Businesses

Any business is eligible for this program as long as they meet the above criteria and qualify as a microenterprise. The following list of example eligible businesses is not exhaustive and meant to serve as a guide for who might be an eligible applicant: