Many will tell you small business is the heart of the Canadian economy. It is certainly at the core locally. When the provincial government issued its emergency order back in March, it divided things into essential and non-essential services. Those that were essential were to keep operating. The rest would be closed down. And, as time passed and public health officials raised concerns, it was necessary to tighten the lockdown further to stop the spread of the deadly virus. And so, even more businesses got shut down.
But at the same time, the provincial government began to address some of the problems facing business owners. Rent, electricity rates, loans, and other measures are some of the steps being taken to ease the pain. There are also federal programs aimed at providing assistance to both employers and employees.
To walk us through the challenges and successes of some of the small businesses in our region, Adam Bureau is joining me. He is the interim chairman of the Cobourg Downtown Business Improvement Area or DBIA, as well as being one of two councillors sitting on the committee. Here is our online interview.
Originally aired: May 8, 2020
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