AUTHOR’S NOTE: This article is not meant to represent the opinion or views of anyone other than the author’s, including the Pacific County Economic Development Council Board of Directors.

The Working Washington Small Business Emergency Grant (WWSBEG) awards were announced last week for a select number of counties across the state, including Pacific.

The Washington State Department of Commerce was responsible for handling the funds and developing a grant process for dispersing them to the 39 counties across the state. Resources were divided based on county population. Of the original $5 million, Pacific County businesses were expected to receive roughly $80,000. When an additional $5 million was added to the pot, Pacific County’s cut was increased, though not quite doubled.

Pull Quote

Whether it’s person-to-person or business-to-business, we have no choice but rely on each other: if our neighbors do better, we do better.

The Economic Development Council (EDC) worked as the buffer between local businesses and the state, and subsequently became the agency responsible for collecting applications to send to Commerce for evaluation. As the person responsible for receiving and vetting the applications, I know that we received over 150 in a week, with most of those coming in the first two days of the funding announcement. The vast majority of applications were written for $10,000, which was the maximum amount allowed.

45 got partial sums

Even though EDC was not able to choose who received funding, we were able to give some input to the Commerce Department before they made their decisions. The local grant advisory committee that I was working with decided that Pacific County would benefit the most from a higher number of businesses receiving smaller grants, rather than only a select few businesses receiving the full $10,000. Ultimately, 45 businesses received partial funding.

Overall, Pacific County businesses received $144,555 through this grant. The highest grant awarded was $7,000 and the average was just over $3,000. Twenty-nine grants went to South County (Chinook, Ilwaco, Long Beach, Ocean Park, Oysterville, Seaview); 13 went to North County (Raymond, South Bend, Tokeland); and the final three were awarded in Bay Center and Naselle. Long Beach businesses received a total of 14 grants for $46,222, the highest in the county.

The grant process

Unfortunately, the award announcement has sparked some backlash within the community. It was to be expected; feeling that you are being passed over repeatedly for relief funds must inspire everything from dejection to fury in local small business owners, especially when stress levels are already so high.

I want to make it clear that not receiving this funding is not a judgement on the success of you or your business. I know it must feel that way, but it’s really much more innocuous than that.

Anyone who has worked in the world of grants knows how technically perfect competitive grant applications must be. When a grant committee has to cut $2 million worth of applications down to $150,000, any small error can derail an entire application. Not fully answering a question, even missing a single checkbox, can be grounds for pulling an application.

Knowing this, I reached out to many businesses after receiving their application to ask for clarification or additional documentation. I wanted to send as many complete, quality applications as I could from Pacific County. Regardless, I knew that most applicants wouldn’t receive funding — it just came down to math. That, of course, does not mollify that disappointment of being passed over again.

It’s easy for me to say, but as much as it has become a cliché, we are in this together. Whether it’s person-to-person or business-to-business, we have no choice but rely on each other: if our neighbors do better, we do better. While it is natural to take care of our own first, please try to resist the urge to turn against each other, resist isolating our communities, and resist condemning people who are there to help.

Trust in good intentions. I know that you’re all doing your best; please believe that everyone else is too.