Local Business

County received requests for financial support totaling six times the amount of funding available

In just 2 ½ weeks in May, employees across 23 of Aggregate Industries' work sites collected a whopping 6,500 pounds of non-perishable foods and household goods and chose the OUR Center in Longmont as the recipient of their efforts.

A new grant offered by the Longmont Downtown Development Authority, or LDDA, aims to alleviate some of the pressure business owners are feeling and to help them safely reopen in the wake of COVID-19 closures and restrictions.

The Strongmont Grant Fund on Monday announced it has issued grants of up to $10,000 to 23 local small businesses.

Safer at home this week became “safer at home and in the vast, great outdoors” when COVID-19 restrictions were loosened by Gov. Jared Polis. The newest step in reopening businesses gave Longmont’s Mile-Hi Skydiving Center the opportunity to once again spread its wings.

Gov. Jared Polis on Thursday issued an executive order allowing Colorado businesses to refuse service to customers who won’t wear masks to prevent transmission of coronavirus.

The J.M. Smucker Co.’s Longmont plant, which employs more than 200 people, is taking additional steps to offer employees financial support including hardship awards and guaranteed pay and benefits in the event of a closure.

In March 2020, Covid-19 buckled the nation’s economy and caused rates of unemployment to skyrocket. At the end of February, unemployment in Longmont held steady at 2.8%. Then as businesses began to temporarily close their doors, it grew to 4.

Renters in Longmont struggle during COVID.

Social media helps local businesses during COVID-19.