SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Over a dozen Northgate Boulevard businesses gathered Wednesday in front of the “Victory & Rhythm” mural located in the Gardenland Northgate neighborhood to hear which 20 small businesses in the area would receive support from the city of Sacramento.
“We're here to celebrate our small businesses,” said Sacramento Councilmember Karina Talamantes. “We're celebrating the ones that are receiving the grants and we're here to celebrate them and their investment in our community.”
Through the program ACCESO Sacramento, 20 businesses received $2,500 one-time grants. In total, $50,000 in support is going to the businesses.
The money is just a fraction of the $5 million given to the Northgate Boulevard business corridor from the city through American Rescue Plan Act funding.
The money is to help small businesses along Northgate Boulevard recover from the negative economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“We're an older community, we've been in Sacramento for a long time,” said Talamantes. “Many times our community feels like ‘hey, they forget about us.’ And this is a commitment from the city to show that we're invested in our small business corridors which are often forgotten neighborhoods. This is one step in many projects that I have [and] my team has in mind, and collaborating with partners to really bring more beauty, to bring safety, to bring life, to bring 'cultura' and culture to this area. This is the first step.”
ABC10 spoke with Marbella Salas, president of the Gardenland Northgate Neighborhood Association, in March about the program and its importance to the community she’s lived in for over three decades.
“They feel like the pressure [is being] taken off for them because it's a relief,” said Salas. “When you're looking at how small these businesses are, they're family owned… they don't have employees, they're living to survive. So this is a big assistance.”
One of the businesses who received a grant was Algo Bueno.
“I'm just really excited,” said Melina Jimenez, owner of Algo Bueno. “It's going to be such a great help for the business, the ideas, and what more we want to put into it [their business].”
Jimenez says they plan to use the money to make some upgrades to their restaurant.
“Pretty much just some upgrades in the building. It is an older building and we've already invested so much in it,” she said. “Just invest a little bit in it. For air conditioning purposes, electrical work, and things like that. It's gonna be such a huge help for us.”
Who received the grant:
- 524 Mexican Restaurant
- Algo Bueno
- Beanheads Coffee
- Carnitas Michoacan and Super Taqueria
- Delmy's Beauty Salon
- El Mercadito Mexican Market
- El Potrillo Western Wear
- It’s My Hair Salon
- Jamaica Irie Spice, Inc.
- Lucy’s Beauty Salón
- Marina's Restaurant
- Marisol Hair Salon
- MSC Integration
- Nails The Luxe
- Northgate Launderland
- Paramees LLC
- Ramona’s
- Salon de Belleza Luna Luz
- Star’s Beauty Salon
- WD Battery
How the money can be used
According to the program's webpage, the money must be used for the following:
- General business operations
- Payroll expenses
- Supplier payments
- Rent, lease, or mortgage payments for the business property,
- Personal protective equipment and/or sanitation supplies and equipment
- Investment in software or technology to maintain online operations, or the purchase of equipment to expand or modify operations.
To learn more about ACCESO Sacramento, click here.
