Berkeley Relief Fund

In light of the COVID-19 pandemic, local businesses in Berkeley struggled to adapt to ever-changing regulations and customer influxes as they continued to seek external support. 

Berkeley City Council voted to enter into a $6.5 million seven-year contract with Motorola Solutions to create an encrypted radio service for the Berkeley Fire and Police Departments, despite public opposition to the city working with a company known to aid U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or ICE.

Berkeley Mayor Jesse Arreguín hosted a town hall Monday to discuss COVID-19 updates, the city’s plan for reopening and rental assistance questions. 

As the federal eviction moratorium issued by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, or CDC, comes closer to its expiration, bringing concerns of evictions, researchers have been looking into how deep of an issue rent debt during the pandemic has been across the United States.

From event cancellations to local business closures, the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic has taken a toll on Berkeley’s economic makeup.

On Friday, Berkeley Mayor Jesse Arreguín announced the reactivation of the Berkeley Relief Fund and the launch of the Berkeley Holidays campaign, both of which aim to support small businesses.

The Alameda County Board of Supervisors has decided to allocate $5 million from the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security, or CARES, Act to the Alameda County CARES Grant program in an effort to financially support local businesses through the COVID-19 pandemic.

Businesses around the country will forever have the economic scar from the effects of COVID-19 in their histories, and it will affect their futures.

Before March, local restaurant and sandwich shop Cheese n’ Stuff was a “zoo” making upward of 500 sandwiches daily for its loyal customers. Now, the once lively shop is barely making 50 sandwiches a day and is missing its usual rush of hungry students.

On Monday, the federal Small Business Administration and Treasury Department released loan data from the Paycheck Protection Program.