St. Mary’s County today announced the approval of the St. Mary’s County Hotel Relief Fund to provide grants to local hotels and other lodging facilities impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Commissioners of St. Mary’s County recognize the COVID-19 pandemic has caused economic hardship for many businesses and to provide local relief from this hardship, have activated the Hotel Relief Fund for hotels and bed-and-breakfast establishments. The grant program, processed through the Department of Economic Development, will have a maximum budget of $371,000, with the goal of supporting St. Mary’s based hotels and bed & breakfasts.

From the press release:

Grants may be used for
1. Normal operating costs, such as rent, payroll, job training, taxes, debt service or similar costs
2. Purchase of PPE, sanitization services or other COVID-19 related costs
Grants may NOT be used for
3. Costs outside normal operating costs
4. Purchase of equipment and soft goods not directly related to COVID-19 prevention
5. Infrastructure improvements not directly related to COVID-19 prevention
6. Technology upgrades not directly related to COVID-19 prevention

Grant amounts will be determined using a formula set by the Maryland Office of Tourism Development and will be based on the number of sleeping rooms, with a maximum grant amount of $31,000. Lodging establishments must be in good standing with the State of Maryland, St. Mary’s County Department of Land Use and Growth Management, Office of the Treasurer and St. Mary’s County Finance Department.

Eligible businesses can submit an online application starting at 10 a.m. Friday, Jan. 15, 2021, at https://www.yesstmarysmd.com/hgrants/. The deadline to apply is 10 a.m. Friday, Feb. 5, 2021.

Applicants are encouraged to visit the grant portal at any time before Jan. 15 for more information on required documents, applicant eligibility, and to create a user account before submission of the application.

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