Greensboro leaders have launched a new fund to help small downtown businesses recover from vandalism and property damage.
Downtown Greensboro Inc. says the Emergency Stabilization Fund will reimburse eligible businesses up to $2,000 for repairs tied to break-ins, graffiti and other unexpected damage.
Rob Overman, with DGI, says the program wasn’t created in response to a recent spike in vandalism. Instead, he says it’s meant to address a long-standing challenge unique to downtown business districts.
“Doing business in downtown is different than doing business, say, at Friendly Center or somewhere outside of the downtown core," says Overman. "And part of that ecosystem does unfortunately involve, you know, instances of vandalism and graffiti and other such things like that.”
The program is open to street-level businesses with fewer than 50 employees. It can be used for expenses like window repairs, temporary board-ups and locksmith services.
Applications are available on DGI’s website.