Lower Manhattan Merchants Missing Out on WTC Grant Money

Construction like this on John Street has placed stress on merchants by limiting pedestrian traffic

Josh Williams/DNAinfo

LOWER MANHATTAN — The majority of small businesses in lower Manhattan have never even heard of grant money that could compensate them for loss of business due to the ongoing World Trade Center construction, a new survey has found.

The “Small Firm Assistance Program” compensates small firms for revenues lost during street closures related to publicly-funded construction projects. Eligible businesses receive grants of up to $25,000 in total compensation based on square footage of retail space affected.

But just a third of the downtown merchants surveyed by Pace University urban planning students were aware of the program. Only 11 of the 76 businesses surveyed had actually received funding.

“[The Lower Manhattan Development Corporation] should create a more personable relationship with small business and small business’s should create an alliance that would strengthen their voice,” Fred Wolf, a senior majoring in environmental studies, said during the students' presentation of their findings to Community Board 1's World Trade Center Development Committee.

The students told the committee that over the past two years more than 320 small businesses have failed or been forced to leave downtown.

But the LMDC says members of the organization they have pounded the pavement and continue to do so with a result of 173 grants to 135 unique businesses with an average of $20,500.

“We applaud the students involved in this project for undertaking such important civic work," according to an e-mail from Errol Cockfield, vice president for communications and community Affairs for LMDC.

"We’re always pleased to receive helpful community input. Anyone who is familiar with Lower Manhattan knows that ongoing construction has hurt local businesses. In response, LMDC has distributed $2.3 million in grants to downtown businesses that need relief and we plan to continue that support.”

The students involved in the study are part of a Pace University class taught CB1 staffer Michael Levine.

“Pace students continue to be a valuable resource for our community and we greatly appreciate their findings,” said CB1 Committee Chair Catherine McVay Hughes.