Nicollet County CARES funding is being used to provide assistance to small for-profit and not-for-profit businesses in Nicollet County adversely impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. Grants of up to $10,000 will be provided for eligible expenses to:

• Businesses without employees (self-employed persons, sole proprietors, independent contractors, homebased business, etc.):  Grants of up to $5,000.
• Businesses with 1-20 full-time equivalent (FTE) employees in addition to the owner:  Grants of up to $10,000.

Eligible Businesses:

For-profit or not-for-profit businesses with a physical establishment in Nicollet County. Not-for-profit businesses must have at least one full-time equivalent (FTE) employee to qualify. Self-employed persons, sole proprietors, independent contractors and home based business must have a physical establishment in Nicollet County or be a resident of Nicollet County.

Must have been operating prior to March 1, 2020.

The business must demonstrate it experienced business interruptions or was adversely affected by the COVID-19 pandemic by:

• Fully or partially suspending operations in 2020 due to an executive order issued by the Governor of Minnesota between March 16, 2020 and August 31, 2020;
  OR
• Experienced a reduction in gross revenue of 25% or greater for two calendar months between March 1, 2020 to August 31, 2020 as compared to the same calendar months in 2019.

For a complete list of program requirements and eligibility, please see the program guide

The County will host two online informational sessions to provide an overview of the grant program as well as the application process. The sessions will be recorded and posted to the County website in the event that you are not able to attend. Applicants are encouraged to watch this online session before applying.

• Wednesday, September 16, 12 – 1 pm
• Thursday, September 24, 9 – 10 am

To register for an informational session and to apply for a grant, please visit https://www.co.nicollet.mn.us/800/Nicollet-County-CARES .  The application period will be September 14 to October 2.  It’s anticipated that funds will be distributed in October.  Please direct questions to [email protected].