Last week, Seattle Mayor Bruce Harrell, Interim Director of the Seattle Office of Economic Development (OED) Markham McIntyre, and Seattle City Councilmember Sara Nelson announced Seattle’s new Capital Access Program, which will support near- and long-term recovery of small businesses by making it easier and more affordable for eligible small businesses to get loans. Applications will be accepted tomorrow, March 8, through April 8 at 5:00 p.m.

The Capital Access Program will help businesses access Washington Flex Fund loans by paying down 25% of loan principal for eligible businesses. Small businesses will be able to borrow up $150,000 with 4% interest to pay for business expenses and expansions including payroll, utilities, marketing, capital improvements, and repairs. In addition to paying down a quarter of the Flex Fund loan principal, businesses will be eligible to receive technical assistance, including financial counselling.

The $8M program is funded by $5M from Seattle’s Equitable Development Initiative and $3M in federal American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funding.

In order to be eligible, a business must:

  • Be a for-profit business located in Seattle
  • Have experienced direct economic disruption due to COVID-19

AND

Meet two of the three following criteria:

  1. No more than $5 million in annual revenue in 2019 or 2020
  2. No more than 50 full-time equivalent employees (FTEs)
  3. No more than 2 locations

The Chamber is excited to see this program realized since we advocated for full funding for this program in Seattle’s 2022 budget, writing,  “We appreciate the proposed increase in the Office of Economic Development’s budget, and we applaud the increase recommended by the Equitable Communities Initiative Task Force to invest in small businesses’ ability to access capital and technical assistance. Please fully fund this increase.” We also strongly supported the creation of the Washington Flex Fund, including organizing a supportive sign-on letter for other chambers.

Businesses interested in learning more can attend a virtual information session on Thursday, March 17 from 2:30-3:30 p.m. (register here) or Monday, March 28 from 2:30-3:30 p.m. (register here). Businesses can also reach out to Business Impact NW at (206) 339-6588 or OED at (206) 684-8090 with questions.

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