As businesses in Bragg Creek begin the clean up and shift through the paperwork, the Government of Alberta has implemented a number of funding options to help with costs, but one business owner says she has been left to fend for herself.
The move comes after parts of Southern Alberta were forced into a state of emergency when a 100-year flood destroyed communities along the Bow and Elbow Rivers.
Stacie Hemmett owner of My Favourite Store - a local gift shop - learned that she would not qualify for disaster relief funding.
“One of the prerequisites for (disaster relief) funding through the government is that your business has to pay out 20 per cent of the income for wages to staff and such,” Hemmett explained.
“I didn’t pay myself 20 per cent, there were months that I didn’t pay anything.”
Doug Horner, minister of finance said there are eligibility conditions to the Disaster Recovery Program (DRP) funding such as businesses that are not covered by insurance with a gross income of between $6,000 and $15 million in a fiscal year must spend 20 per cent of its gross income on salaries, to be eligible. However Horner says those who don’t qualify have other options.
Horner didn’t want to comment on a particular case, but said if one business owner didn’t fit the eligibility criteria, there were other options available.
The Small Business Rebuilding Program announced July 30, will provide support to small businesses with 21 to 50 full-time employees and is fully funded by the Government of Alberta.
This new program works in conjunction with the existing DRP, which provides assistance to organizations with up to 20 employees, as well as the recently announced Hand-Up plan, which provides zero-interest loans and interest rebates.
The no-interest loans, for which the Province is acting as guarantor, is for a two-year period with the aim of helping businesses cover costs such as insurance deductibles.
“The DRP only gets you back to the essentials,” Horner said.
“When we’re in High River, the Alberta Chamber of Commerce CEO said that the initiatives that we’ve been putting forward have been positive for the business community.”
Hemmett opened her business in April of last year.
In her first year in business, Hemmett did what most new business owners do and pour all the income back into her business.
Unfortunately, that decision resulted in a lack of approved funding for the young entrepreneur.
“I’m going to try (to get funding from) the Bragg Creek (Community Association) fundraising group, so I didn’t pay myself so I’m dead in the water,” she said.
Hemmett is asking for funding to help replace lost product and damaged shelving units, a total cost of $1,893. She estimates her business has lost $16,000 in revenue because it was closed for the month of July, and to make matters worse, Hemmett relied on a serving position to supplement her income.
The restaurant Hemmett worked at part-time, Joey’s Restaurant, is closed for the foreseeable future.
It’s a long road ahead for many of the local businesses in the hamlet, and the slow uphill climb is only the beginning.
“Slow it’s very slow,” said Marine Cooke owner of Joey’s restaurant in Bragg Creek. “The insurance company is telling me that I’m covered, but it’s taking a long time.”
Cooke is one of the lucky ones, the Joey’s restaurant franchise mandated flood coverage as a corporate policy – but sifting through paperwork is time consuming and not knowing when the cheque will come is stalling progress, according to Cooke.
Since she is eligible for coverage she is choosing not to apply for provincial funding, adding that she “doesn’t want to double dip.”
A $10,000 deductable needs to be covered, and she’s asked the Province to see if she can qualify for funding.
The timing has hurt the business community, as the summer months are when business owners “fill their bank accounts.”
“It’s when most of the businesses make our money,” Cooke said, “In the summer we make money and spend it all in the winter months to stay open ... this happened when people had lean bank accounts.”
Cooke employed 20 people, 17 of which live in Bragg Creek, most of whom have found employment with other Bragg Creek businesses that weren’t affected by the floods.
“Everyone is working together, people are still trying to work to get the rest of the store open,” Cooke said. “It has long reaching effects.”
Help for residents
Announced July 28, the Government of Alberta will fund up to $10,000 per home for flood mitigation repairs to residents basements.
“Residents will be able to receive the mitigation funds to protect their basement from future damage,” said Liz Breakey, councilor for Bragg Creek.
“Using materials that can be cleaned up, back stops on plumbing and protection with electrical system worth up to $10,000 (are available to residents).”
Breakey added this is a welcome announcement for residents and especially local businesses.
“Our businesses are having a really rough time,” she added.
“These two months hold them up for the year.”
The new measures that have been put place to help residents of Bragg Creek and other flood damaged communities, relate to finished and partially finished basements, where flood damage is most likely to occur.
The new measures include: refinishing with materials and finishes that resist water damage and are cleanable; sealing all openings in the basement wall where piping, wiring and conduits come through to prevent seepage; protecting electrical services in the basement to quickly restore electrical function by raising wiring and outlets; and protecting plumbing fixtures and equipment from back flow from the public sewers.
The level of funding is based on the cost of construction per square foot to a functional, basic level of finish, based on the existing developed space of the home basis.
Acceptance and moving forward
“I think people are coming to terms with the situation,” Breakey said.
“The first couple of weeks were shock and clean-up and trying to figure out what the basics were to carry on, what was covered and what isn’t with their insurance companies.”
To learn more about flood related funding programs visit www.alberta.ca
