Seattle, WA — The Chinatown International District (CID) Restaurants and other Small Businesses Relief Fund announced today that over $300K has been raised to provide financial aid to small businesses in the CID neighborhood.
The relief fund — which is co-managed by the Seattle Chinatown International District Preservation and Development Authority (SCIDpda), CID Business Improvement Area (CIDBIA), and Friends of Little Saigon (FLS) — reached this fundraising landmark through the confirmation of support from multiple funders. This includes from Historic South Downtown (HSD), Union Bank, the Seattle Sounders FC Relief Fund, and JP Morgan Chase. This also includes donations from businesses that got their start in the Chinatown-International District, including Uwajimaya, TDW+Co, and Pho Bac.
“We applaud the leadership and the tireless work of the SCIDpda, CIDBIA, and FLS in creating this initiative. We know that the APA community was affected early and exceptionally hard by the COVID-19 outbreak. In fact, many small businesses in the Chinatown–International District have been impacted as a result of the virus, by pooling resources, we can all help these communities overcome the challenges that still lay ahead,” said MUFG Union Bank’s External Affairs Manager, Tim Otani.
In mid-March, the fund received an initial seed of $100,000 from Vulcan, Inc., and the relief fund team raised an additional $100,000 through an online giving campaign that received donations from over 500 individual donors. The recent addition of funding support from HSD, Union Bank, the Sounders FC Relief Fund, and JPMorgan Chase will enable the fund managers to release a second round of funding.
“It’s a privilege to be able to help our community through the CID Relief Fund,” said Sounders FC Majority Owner Adrian Hanauer. “The Sounders would not be the club that we’ve become without the incredible support we’ve always found in the vibrant and diverse Seattle community, including the Chinatown-International District. We applaud the work that CID Relief Team is doing during this unprecedented time and hope the grant from the Sounders FC Relief Fund provides assistance for our neighbors.”
Whereas the first round of relief funding distributed grants to 87 restaurants and food service businesses in the CID, the second round will reach a broader range of non- restaurant and food service businesses operating in the CID. The fund managers anticipate releasing the second round in the first few weeks of May.
The fund is still open and accepting donations. The fund managers plan to distribute 100% of the fund to small businesses in the CID.
While the entities involved in the CID Business Relief Team have historically collaborated year around across various endeavors pertaining to economic development of the Chinatown International District, this is the most intentional and unified effort of the organizations to share, align, and combine resources to best serve businesses in the CID.
In addition to founding and managing the CID Restaurants and other Small Businesses Relief Fund, the CID Business Relief Team conducts neighborhood-wide outreach, interpretation, and translation of small business relief information, including available grants, loans, and other avenues of relief (i.e. utility and tax deferment, eviction moratoriums, etc.).
Donors can donate and find information about the fund at bit.ly/cidbizrelief
Press inquiries and general inquiries related to the fund can be sent to cidbizrelief@scidpda.org.
###
