DALLAS (1080 KRLD) - The Dallas City Council has approved several items to try to improve the local economy following the "unprecedented pandemic" of COVID-19.
Mayor Eric Johnson laid out the city's plan Wednesday afternoon. "I'm proud to say we have taken action," he said.
Among issues approved by the Dallas City Council are a plan to help small businesses reopen. Businesses that can show their revenue has dropped at least 25% will be eligible for loans and grants.
The city committed $5 million for small business loans, which will be paid for by federal grants and private donations.
"Small businesses are the lifeblood of the Dallas economy," Johnson says. "We will continue to look for ways to help our entrepreneurs who employ hundreds of thousands of people in our city."
The fund will provide up to $10,000 in grants and up to $50,000 in loans. The City of Dallas says the application will be available next month and loans will begin in June.
The city council also approved $13.7 million in mortgage and rental assistance. The Office of Community Care and Office of Housing and Neighborhood Revitalization plan to launch the program in the first week of May. Applicants will need to show they lost their job or were furloughed because of COVID-19.
"I understand times are tough right now," Johnson says. "COVID-19 has hit us all very hard. People are seeing pay cuts, furloughs and even layoffs."
Landlords will also be required to issue a "COVID Notice of Possible Eviction" before forcing someone from a property for not paying rent.
The notice must include information on rental assistance and allow 21 days to negotiate a payment plan. If a tenant can prove "substantial financial hardship," the notice is extended to 60 days.
"We passed an ordinance to slow down the eviction process and encourage landlords and tenants to work together as they both face hardships because of COVID-19," Johnson says.
Johnson and council members say they are also preparing for a "significant hit" to sales tax revenue this fiscal year.
"We are all struggling in some way, but we all now get to be a part of what I believe will be an amazing turnaround," says Councilman Adam McGough, the chairman of the COVID-19 Human and Social Recovery and Assistance committee. "We'll be part of creating a new Dallas and part of the greatest comeback in the history of our city."