The City of Hemet Economic Development Department is pleased to announce the Hemet Entrepreneur & Small Business Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Program.
Donor Name: City of Hemet Economic Development Department
State: California
City: Hemet
Type of Grant: Grant
Deadline: 02/05/2026
Size of the Grant: $10,000 to $100,000
Grant Duration: Grant Duration Not Mentioned
Details:
The program provides grant funding of up to $20,000 per approved business to help eligible entrepreneurs establish or grow their operations within the City of Hemet. Funding may be used to support a wide range of business needs, including office equipment, office or commercial space costs, software and subscriptions, specialized equipment, and other eligible start-up expenses.
The primary GOAL of the Hemet Entrepreneur & Small Business CDBG Grant Program is the establishment of new, sustainable businesses that contribute to the City’s economic vitality and the creation of new permanent jobs.
Key Objectives
- Job Creation: Create new, full-time equivalent (FTE) jobs, with at least 51% of those jobs to be held by or made available to LMI persons, in accordance with HUD CDBG national objectives.
- Business Diversity: Promote the start-up of targeted high-growth businesses (Tech/Manufacturing), essential services (Professional Services), and community-focused enterprises (Culinary/Restaurant).
- Economic Stimulus: Increase the number of actively licensed businesses operating within the City of Hemet.
- Entrepreneurial Support: Provide necessary capital to early-stage entrepreneurs to cover initial start-up costs, equipment, and operating expenses.
Tracks
The Entrepreneur & Small Business Grant Program offers financial assistance to qualifying individuals and startups across three focused tracks:
Kitchen Start-up Grant
- Focus: Food service businesses including restaurants, cafes, bakeries, and specialized catering facilities.
- Eligible Uses of Funds (Examples):
- Leasehold improvements specific to commercial kitchen operations (e.g., ventilation, grease trap installation).
- Purchase of commercial kitchen equipment (e.g., ovens, ranges, refrigerators, dishwashers).
- Initial inventory (up to a cap defined by the City, e.g., 10% of the total grant amount).
- Required permitting and licensing fees (e.g., Health Department permits)
Tech Start-up Grant
- Focus: Early-stage technology, manufacturing, aerospace, semiconductor, or other high-growth businesses with a novel concept or product requiring specialized technical expertise.
- Eligible Uses of Funds (Examples):
- Purchase of specialized machinery, testing equipment, or high-end technical hardware.
- Leasehold improvements specific to manufacturing/R&D (e.g., specialized electrical work, cleanroom setup).
- Development of proprietary software or intellectual property (IP) costs (e.g., patent filing fees, not including basic web design).
- Initial working capital (up to a cap) for specialized component acquisition.
Professional Services Start-up Grant
- Focus: Businesses whose primary activity is providing expertise-based services to businesses or individuals, such as business consulting, legal/paralegal services, specialized technical IT support, or other highly skilled professional services.
Funding Information
The maximum grant award available per approved business is Twenty Thousand Dollars ($20,000.00).
Eligibility Requirements
To be considered for any of the three grant tracks, all applicants and proposed businesses must meet one of the following minimum requirements:
- Applicant Status
- New Business Status: The applicant must be a new business in the process of starting up. For the purpose of this grant, a new business is defined as an entity established (or to be established) and operating for less than five (5) years at the time of application submission.
- Legal Status: Applicants must provide documentation confirming their legal business entity status (e.g., Sole Proprietorship, LLC, Corporation, Partnership) with the State of California.
- Good Standing: The business entity must be in good standing with the California Secretary of State and the Governor’s Office of Business and Economic Development (Go-Biz)
- Business Location and Operation
- Location: The proposed business must be physically located and operated within the incorporated City limits of Hemet. A valid lease agreement or proof of property ownership for the Hemet location must be provided.
- Business License: The applicant must apply for or possess a current and valid City of Hemet Business License before any grant funds can be disbursed.
- Financial and Tax Compliance
- Tax Compliance: The business owner(s) and the proposed entity must have no outstanding or delinquent taxes owed to the City of Hemet, County of Riverside, State of California, or Federal Government.
- Credit Check/Financial Review: The City reserves the right to conduct a financial and credit review of the principals and/or the business entity.
- Job Creation Requirements (CDBG Compliance)
- Mandatory Job Creation: The grantee must commit to creating a specified number of permanent, full-time equivalent (FTE) jobs within a defined period (typically 12-24 months) following the grant award.
- LMI Benefit: At least fifty-one percent (51%) of the new jobs created by the business must be offered to or taken by low-to-moderate-income (LMI) individuals, as defined by HUD income limits for Riverside County. The business is responsible for collecting and reporting employee income documentation to demonstrate compliance.
For more information, visit City of Hemet.
