The City of New Westminster is trying to stay on top of the needs of local businesses.
In response to the COVID-19 crisis, the City of New Westminster created several task forces to delve into various issues, including one that’s been focusing on business and the working economy. Since the COVID-19 pandemic began, city officials have made more than 1,500 business outreach calls.
“We are not hearing anything, generally, new,” said Blair Fryer, the city’s manager of communications and economic development. “We are not finding out anything that we haven’t already found out, but certainly the need for cash-flow and relief continues to be a message that we are hearing loud and clear.”
Fryer recently told city council that the need for commercial rent relief and the ability to access government grants are the top concerns being expressed by local businesses.
“In terms of the phone calls, and as we have done the outreach, we have definitely been pointing everybody in the direction of all of the resources that we have developed,” Fryer said. “The resource page, COVID-19 For Businesses, hosted on the website, is detailed and is updated multiple times a day. Any information that a business may want, we continue to drive people there.”
Since its inception, the business and working economy had pursued a number of initiatives, such as working on a Support Local campaign, developing a commercial area security plan for commercial areas, and redeploying staff to call all business licence holders in the city. To date, the city has posted more than 130 business listings on its Support Local website.
“In terms of business, I appreciate the forward-planning thinking that is happening through the surveys and the buy-local campaign,” said Coun. Jaimie McEvoy. “As we continue, we are going to needs some really strong community-organized support, grassroots support working with the city to help support, especially our small, independent businesses.”
Coun. Chinu Das said some local businesses don’t seem to be aware of the financial support that may be available to them. Coun. Chuck Puchmayr agreed, saying some programs have been introduced to help small businesses but some of the small business owners he’s spoken to don’t realize they exist.
“I don’t know how much more we can do to facilitate that, but I’d hate to see businesses struggling because they weren’t aware of what was available to them. … Whatever you can do to try and close that gap would be great,” Puchmayr said.
Coun. Mary Trentadue said it seems that everyone has a different level of capacity to access services.
“Some people have time to research and look into what might be available to them, and some people do not,” said Trentadue, who recently sat in on a call with local businesses. “If there was a way the city could help collate and really make that information accessible and easy to understand and able to find it in one place, I think that would go a long way. I know we have been doing some of that work, but it seems that is still quite an issue for many small business owners.”
Puchmayr said he’s been noticing more For Rent signs around town and wondered if staff had heard from businesses that aren’t planning to reopen because of the COVID-19 crisis.
“We haven’t been having people contact us to say that they are closing their business. Certainly that hasn’t been coming out through our phone calls,” Fryer said. “What has been coming out in the phones calls is, very clearly, that businesses are being very challenged, and every week that the situation continues makes some very hard questions come to light for them to ask.”
Information for businesses during the COVID-19 pandemic can be found at www.newwestcity.ca/covid19business. Community members can go to www.investnewwest.ca for information about local businesses.
