Business Flood Recovery Fund wraps up special grant fund, after assisting 68 small businesses

On June 19 and 20, 2012, the skies opened. A record-breaking deluge dropped 7 to 10 inches of rain within 24 hours on many parts of the region. Rivers, streams, and even drainage ditches became raging whitewater. Communities were under water.

In the aftermath, friends and strangers alike pitched in to wet-vac, squeegee, and shovel sludge. Donations poured in to the American Red Cross and United Way, among others.

The Northland Foundation, along with more than a dozen partners, also stepped up. The Business Flood Recovery Fund was established within days, and within a few weeks the first grants of up $5,000 each were awarded to small businesses. The fund aimed to provide a quick boost to help small businesses begin to get back on their feet and their owners and employees back to work.

Following are the stories of just two of the 68 small businesses that benefited by grant assistance from this unique fund. Read more on the Northland Foundation website.

Whole Foods Co-op

 

Whole Foods Co-op (WFC) is a fixture in Duluth. The co-op was established in 1970 and today has over 7,000 owners.  The store welcomes roughly 1,200 shoppers per day and employs 105 people.

While WFC’s building on Duluth’s East Hillside was spared, the customer parking lot was not so lucky. A retaining wall under construction along the avenue buckled under the onslaught of water, and a culvert within the hill burst under the pressure of water and debris. What was left was a mind-boggling crater extending some 50 feet across and 80 feet into the customer parking lot. The retaining wall was destroyed as was the stairway from the lot to the alley below.

The $5,000 grant awarded to Whole Foods went toward emergency fencing and other pressing clean-up work. Although the grant was a drop in the proverbial bucket, WFC's general manager, Sharon Murphy, was appreciative.

“The speed with which we received the grant was amazing.” -Sharon Murphy, Whole Foods Co-op

"Receiving support from the Northland Foundation has been an emotional as well as financial benefit for all of us at WFC. It was nice to know that someone cared about what we and the community went through," said Murphy.

North Country Lawncare and Landscaping, Mahtowa

 

Roughly 30 miles south, in Mahtowa, County Road 4 leading to North Country Lawncare and Landscaping was a mess. Entire sections of blacktop had collapsed, and parts of the road looked like a waterfall.

The massive flooding also left its mark on the rural Carlton County property on which Glenn and Renee Gaffney’s small business stands. Saturated earth “sunk” inside and outside North Country’s storage buildings, leaving gaps around the perimeter.

The Gaffneys needed to act in order to prevent additional losses but, like most people in the region, their insurance did not cover flooding.

“Thanks to the Northland Foundation, we were able to replace a lot of the ground that eroded. Had we not been able to replace the dirt to reinforce our foundation, future damage would have been inevitable,” said Glenn Gaffney.

“We still have a lot of dirt to replace, but the immediate danger has been taken care of,” said Renee.

 

It Takes a Village

 

The Business Flood Recovery Fund, now fully deployed, was funded by the collaborative generosity of foundation and corporate donors.

Together, funding partners contributed more than $360,000 to reach out to a bowling alley in McGregor, a diner in Moose Lake, a ski hill in Douglas County, and 65 other businesses in the region.

“It began with a request from our friends at AgStar,” explained Tom Renier, President of the Northland Foundation, “to donate $25,000 toward helping businesses, and it snowballed from there.”

“We started making calls and soon raised an astonishing amount. Small businesses are vital to their communities, and our partners were eager to invest in their recovery," concluded Renier.

The Northland Foundation would like to thank the following partners: AgStar Financial Services • Barr Engineering • Blandin Foundation • Granite Equity Partners • Great River Energy • Hanft Fride Law Firm • Involta • Maurices • Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development • Minnesota Power Foundation • Northwest Area Foundation • Otto Bremer Foundation • The McKnight Foundation