Some small stores ‘lost over 50 per cent of our business.’ Durham boards of trade, chambers of commerce say businesses still need help

Sherry Robinson of Spa Sedona in Ajax is among the local businesses calling on the provincial government to continue supporting businesses as they re-open. July 21, 2021

The local business community is calling on both the provincial and federal governments to continue supporting them as they reopen.

Sherry Robinson, owner of Spa Sedona in Pickering Village, felt her industry was singled out during the lockdowns.

“Yes, we are a more personal service but we take precautions for that,” Robinson said. “I was a little put off that we were always made to be the bad guys and were the last to reopen.”

And it hurt.

“We lost over 50 per cent of our business,” she said.

She feels bouncing back won’t be so easy, and wonders what it will mean for her business of 16 years when relief programs end in a couple months.

“Taking it away in September for me is too early,” she said. “If I need it, I need it, and if I don’t need it, I won’t qualify because it’s all based on your income.”

Nicole Gibson, executive director of the Ajax-Pickering Board of Trade, sent a letter to representatives from both the provincial and federal governments requesting continued support for the business community.

Among numerous requests, it asks the provincial government to specifically “advocate for the continuation of important federal programs through the recovery period, including the Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy and Canada Emergency Business Account.”

Whitby Chamber of Commerce CEO Natalie Prychitko explained limits of people inside establishments, time between clients, and costs in terms of personal protective equipment and cleaning all affect businesses as they slowly reopen.

“For businesses who are following these protocols who have just reopened in the middle of July, it feels like that September date is quite a cliff,” she said.

Prychitko said there are concerns that by cutting off support to businesses in September, “we will see a significant change in success for businesses. They are counting on these supports and have been for quite some time.”

Emily Hogveen, spokesperson for Pickering-Uxbridge MPP and minister of finance Peter Bethlenfalvy, said the province has introduced a number of support programs for small businesses split between grants and rebates.

“These include the Ontario Small Business Support Grant, between its two payments totalling $2.95 billion to nearly 110,000 businesses,” she said.

Gibson’s letter did ask that the province open a third round of applications to eligible businesses for this grant in particular.

Hogveen noted the introduction of the Property Tax Rebate and Energy Cost Rebates for eligible businesses required to close or significantly restrict services to get back 100 per cent of their reported property tax.

“We will continue to work closely with small businesses going forward,” she said.

Bonnie Wrightman, manager of business development at the Clarington Board of Trade and Office of Economic Development, said “We support the messaging of our colleagues across the region and province including the Ontario Chamber of Commerce as it relates to the needs of the Clarington Business Community.”

Pickering-Uxbridge MP Jennifer O’Connell said much of the 2021 federal budget focused on the recovery side for businesses.

She spoke of numerous new or enhanced programs, including the Canada Small Business Financing Program, for which eligibility has been expanded.

The feds will also lower the cost of credit card transaction fees, and funding to regional development agencies will be increased and run beyond September.

The federal government are also talking about an emergency wage subsidy and extending it into November if necessary, as well as sector-specific supports.

“We’re going to keep monitoring and we’re going to be flexible because obviously with the pandemic as there were twists and turns we had to adjust as well,” O’Connell said.

Story behind the story: Durhamregion.com saw the letter from the Ajax-Pickering Board of Trade asking the government for help, and chose to look into the issue.