Joint release with Senator Tony Sheldon, the Hon Dominic Perrottet MP, the Hon Paul Toole MP, the Hon Steph Cooke MP
Flood-impacted commercial landlords in the Northern Rivers will soon be able to apply for support to get businesses back up and running, thanks to a $30 million investment from the Australian and NSW governments.
Federal Minister for Emergency Management Murray Watt said the $30 million Northern Rivers Commercial Property - Return to Business Support Grant will assist property owners who lease to small and medium businesses in the Northern Rivers.
"This support will cover repair-related costs for landlords to ensure retail businesses can reopen. That could include clean-up services, hiring equipment or covering the cost of building repairs," Minister Watt said.
NSW Premier Dominic Perrottet said the need for this scheme to ensure businesses can recover is evident - the commercial landlord and small business relationship is the backbone of any central business district.
"We've also ensured that this program takes into account the fact that many landlords may have multiple businesses and locations reliant on them. Combined with the impacted small businesses receiving grants through the Small Business Grants, this will help many shops reopen - it's the end-to-end type of thinking we need to recover from natural disasters," Mr Perrottet said.
Deputy Premier and Minister for Regional NSW Paul Toole said the grants will support the repair of commercial premises to help businesses reopen their doors, get locals back to work and keep the economy moving.
"Whether it's a local café or restaurant, hairdresser or store, mechanics or butcher, this program is about delivering a practical solution that will make a real difference for commercial landlords, and impacted business owners, their staff and customers," Mr Toole said.
Minister for Emergency Services and Resilience and Minister for Flood Recovery Steph Cooke said she had heard from many landlords in Northern Rivers communities who are unable to fund the repairs to the property they lease.
"This is a problem not just for commercial landlords but also for small and medium business owners who rely on these premises in order to keep their doors open, so this $30 million funding package is welcome news for the entire community," Ms Cooke said.
Special Envoy for Disaster Recovery Tony Sheldon said helping Northern Rivers shops and services recover would benefit the whole community.
"By helping businesses to get back on their feet, it will provide greater access to goods and services, and support local jobs," Senator Sheldon said.
Business NSW Regional Director, Northern Rivers, Jane Laverty congratulated the NSW Government for taking the time to understand the devastating impact the floods have had on commercial building infrastructure in the region.
"Providing grant support to undertake critical repairs to commercial building infrastructure will go a long way to getting our small businesses back into sound and habitable premises so they can trade again," Ms Laverty said.
"This grant program will enable commercial landlords, many of whom are self-funded retirees or mum and dad investors who chose to support opportunities for local employment, to make critical repairs and support their tenants to re-establish as soon as possible."
Applications for the Northern Rivers Commercial Property - Return to Business Support Grant will open at the end of September.
Customers are able to register to be notified when applications open by contacting Service NSW on 13 77 88.
The Northern Rivers Commercial Property - Return to Business Support Grant is part of the $3.5 billion committed by the Australian and NSW governments to help the communities impacted by the recent floods.
Flood-impacted commercial property owners and landlords in the Northern Rivers will be able to apply for up to $50,000.
For a full list of all available support, visit nsw.gov.au/floods or call Service NSW 13 77 88.
