To help Lincoln Park’s recovering business districts, the Lincoln Park Chamber of Commerce (LPCC) has been awarded two COVID-19 Small Business Support (CSBS) Grants, one for Outreach and General Business Assistance and one for Back to Business Support. Launched by Mayor Lori. E. Lightfoot and the City of Chicago’s Department of Business Affairs and Consumer Protection (BACP), the CSBS Grant program awarded funding to 41 nonprofit organizations to provide business owners and entrepreneurs with targeted assistance, expert training and resources to help address common challenges brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic.

The CSBS Grant supports Chicago’s small business ecosystem by delivering highly specialized business programs and services to business owners and aiding them in their recovery from the COVID-19 public health emergency. The targeted relief and neighborhood development support to businesses and communities along Chicago’s commercial corridors will help to drive economic recovery.

Chicago’s small businesses are fundamental to the economic livelihood of countless residents. This program will guide Chicago’s economic recovery by assisting small businesses in mitigating financial hardship, addressing the impacts of the pandemic, implementing COVID-19 prevention tactics, and establishing strategic business growth plans. The CSBS Programs will be launched throughout the entire City, including commercial corridors in neighborhoods such as downtown, Little Village, Chatham, Rogers Park, and Garfield Park.

The program is funded under the Federal Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act Coronavirus Relief Fund (CRF) and is managed by BACP. The program previews the strategic investments to create an equitable economic recovery for Chicago’s business community as outlined in the Chicago Recovery Plan. The Chicago Recovery Plan will invest holistically in communities and industries hardest hit by the pandemic to support economic recovery across the City.