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Small Business owners in Minneapolis are calling on the City Council for $5 million in relief funds

"Many businesses have lost over 80% of their customer base throughout the surge," Chowdhury

People gather at a memorial for Alex Pretti who was shot and killed by an ICE agent last month on February 12, 2026 in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
People gather at a memorial for Alex Pretti who was shot and killed by an ICE agent last month on February 12, 2026 in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
(Photo by Stephen Maturen/Getty Images)

Small Business Owners in Minneapolis are calling on the City Council for $5 million in relief funds.

The proposed "small business resiliency fund" would draw from the city's downtown assets fund to provide immediate grants and forgivable loans for payroll, rent, and inventory.


City council member Aurin Chowdhury says this specific measure focuses on stabilizing storefronts that reported revenue drops as high as 80%.

"There is an estimated $47 million per month lost in wages for people afraid to leave home," Chowdhury explains. "There is an additional 76,000 people citywide that may be experiencing food insecurity."

If the council's Committee of the whole moves the resolution forward this morning, it will head to a final vote this Thursday.

Community leaders and city council members will gather at Midtown Global Market Tuesday morning to advocate for these funds, specifically aimed at some immigrant-owned businesses which they say are hardest hit by a loss of business during "Operation Metro Surge."

"Many businesses have lost over 80% of their customer base throughout the surge," Chowdhury adds. "And from the moment that ICE has come into our communities, they've had to provide payroll for workers that can't show up."

The City Council holds its first vote on the measure at 9:30 Tuesday morning.

"Many businesses have lost over 80% of their customer base throughout the surge," Chowdhury