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It doesn’t take that much effort to see how local businesses have been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Empty streets, locked doors and paper signs taped to windows all tell the same story — “We’re closed.”
It takes a bit more effort to determine how best to help them find their footing during the crisis. That’s Scott Sattler’s current project.
Sattler serves as director of the Perry County Economic Development Authority, and has made it his mission to help local businesses find the resources they need to survive.
“Only essential businesses are allowed to operate,” Sattler said. “We have a lot of people working from home. My main concern is all the businesses that are going to struggle through this time, with workforce issues or health issues.”
The closures came in the wake of a shelter-in-place order issued last week by the Perry County Commission, restaurants and bars across Perry County were forced to either temporarily close their doors or transition to delivery, drive-thru or curbside options, some retailers were forced to close their doors, along with a variety of wellness centers, and many offices — including government administration — were closed to public access.
With the doors closed to the public and the resulting loss of revenue, many businesses have been forced to layoff workers or simply cut staff. TG Missouri, the county’s largest employer, was forced to layoff hundreds of workers in reaction to shutdowns among the auto manufacturers the company supplies.
Now, a week after the order was issued, some businesses are still trying to find their footing as they look for a way to survive the next several weeks.
Sattler aims to make that a bit easier.
Over the past week, he said he’s been busy compiling information on various programs and resources intended to help local businesses and sharing it on the EDA website at https://www.perrycountymo.org/155/COVID-19-Business-Resources.
“So I have health links for the CDC and there’s some links on there for businesses, precautions they can take if they still have employees at their business,” Sattler said, “and then I also linked to all the Small Business Administration resources so that our small businesses can go to those links and get information about small business loans during this time.”
Those small business loans were made possible on March 13, when Gov. Mike Parson declared a state of emergency in Missouri.
“What that does is, it makes Missouri qualified for small businesses that have under 500 employees to apply for small business disaster recovery loans through the Small Business Administration,” Sattler said. “And that’s good to help our small businesses with their short-term capital for either labor or operating costs.”
In addition, Parson’s declaration also helps employees who find themselves temporarily out of work.
“A company like TG, when they have to go into temporary layoffs, [the disaster declaration] allows their employees to file for unemployment as long as they have a callback date,” Sattler said. That helps those individuals who were laid off due to this virus.”
In the end, Sattler said his job is to do what he can to help businesses in the county.
“It’s a big role, because we need to find all the resources and there’s a lot of information coming out of the federal government and from all the agencies like the IRS and Department of Labor, and then also the state, and we try to help businesses get through those regulations,” Sattler said. “I’m concerned about everybody’s health, of course, but I’m also concerned that when this is over, we have viable businesses here in Perry County.”
To that end, he said, he’s available to any business owner seeking information or assistance.
“The Perry County Economic Development Authority office is open and fully operational to meet the needs of our businesses,” Sattler said. “People can get a hold of me either by email or phone and I can try and give them the information they need.”
Those seeking more information may reach Sattler by phone at 573-547-1097 or by email at perryeda@perrycountymo.org.
