2024 Huron County Small Business Grants Awarded!
$34,815 Awarded to Four Huron County Small Businesses!
Huron County, Michigan – October 17, 2024
The Eastern Michigan Small Business Network (EM-SBN) is pleased to announce it has completed its first round of funding for Region 6 small businesses in Shiawassee, Lapeer, Tuscola, Huron, Sanilac, and St. Clair counties to support their growth and development. Over 500 small businesses applied for 2024 grant funding. A second round of grants will be awarded in 2025.
The following Huron County small businesses were awarded the Small Business Grant for 2024:
Beadle Bay Marina & Campground in Pigeon- $10,965.00
DK Service & Repairs in Owendale- $4,200.00
Great Lakes Kennel in Bay Port- $9,850.00
Thumb Disposal & Container Service in Bad Axe- $9,800.00
“In Huron County we saw an outstanding response to our call for applications for the EM-SBN grants,” said Samantha Schnettler, Executive Director of the Huron County Economic Development Corporation. “We received seventy-two applications for support from businesses across the county, requesting over $850,000. The anonymous awarding process scored applicants based on several criteria including economic and community impact, the track record of the business, and the growth potential exhibited in the application. We are excited to award these dollars to our four highest scoring businesses.”
Schnettler said the scoring committee prioritized fully funding applicants who scored high on the scoring rubric as opposed to partially funding a lot of businesses with smaller award amounts. Due to the grant requirement that businesses must complete the plans in their application even if they aren’t awarded the full amount, a lot of small awards would have meant that the businesses would have to come up with the difference on their own to fund their growth plans detailed in their application. “We did not want to burden our local business community to have to close the gaps on their project funding with partial awards if possible. The average request from our Huron County businesses was over $12,000; by focusing on fully funding our top scoring businesses, we were able to guarantee these businesses would be successful in their efforts with these dollars and not burdened with the need to take on debt to execute their growth plans.
We’re excited to see the growth and expansion these small businesses will experience as a result of this funding.”
The 2024 Small Business grant program is being administered by the Economic Development Alliance (EDA) of St. Clair County, Michigan. The EDA is working closely with participating Region 6 Economic Development Organizations and key partners such as the MI-SBDC to successfully promote and administer this grant opportunity.
About the Eastern Michigan Small Business Network:
The Eastern Michigan Small Business Network is a partnership of organizations committed to serving the needs of startup and small businesses in Michigan's central eastern region. The primary goal of the Network is to accelerate the entrepreneurial pathway to success. As part of a recent $2.5 million Small Business Support Hubs (SBSH) program grant award from the Michigan Economic Development Corporation (MEDC), the new Small Business Cohort aims to strengthen and improve our region’s entrepreneurial ecosystem and help people realize their dream of being self-employed. This project is being supported, in whole or in part, by federal award number SLFRP0127 awarded to the State of Michigan by the U.S. Department of the Treasury.
About EDA of St. Clair County
The Economic Development Alliance (EDA) of St. Clair County is a private non-profit organization that creates economic prosperity by growing companies and cultivating vibrant communities. The EDA is a full-service economic development agency working in the areas of business attraction, retention and expansion, community development, small business development, talent attraction and regional marketing.
About the Huron County Economic Development Corporation
The Huron County Economic Development Corporation (EDC) exists to support industrial, agricultural, and commercial industries through expansion, retention, and attraction activities within Huron County. By supporting these businesses and marketing the area, the EDC strives to develop, maintain and enhance the economic base and quality of life in Huron County. The EDC also acts as a catalyst for projects needing governmental support at the local, state, and national levels.
This project is being supported, in whole or in part, by Federal Award Number SLFRP0127 awarded to the State of Michigan by the U.S. Department of the Treasury.
