Luzerne County Manager C. David Pedri showcases coronavirus grant recipients during a press conference at the Mohegan Sun Arena in Wilkes-Barre Township Wednesday.
Jennifer Learn-Andes | Times Leader
Eric Kuhn expressed gratitude Wednesday for Luzerne County’s decision to earmark $12,000 of its federal coronavirus funding to his retail clothing shop — The Haberdashery in Forty Fort.
“This money definitely helped us survive,” Kuhn said during a county press conference at the Mohegan Sun Arena in Wilkes-Barre Township. “Getting this help and assistance just reassured me that I chose the right community to open my store in.”
County Manager C. David Pedri held the conference to highlight a few of the hundreds of entities that received a portion of the county’s $28.66 million in Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act funding. Pedri has posted a 43-page report under the budget/finance department section at luzernecounty.org breaking down how the money was spent.
All funding had to be used for COVID-19 planning, preparation and response expenses incurred through the end 2020. The county kept $11.8 million for its expenses but chose to allocate the rest to small businesses, municipalities, nonprofits, ticketed venues, schools, chambers of commerce, tourism, veteran groups, public libraries, youth sports groups and other entities.
Kuhn, who was among more than 679 county small businesses receiving grants, said he had to change his entire business model to “adapt and overcome” during the pandemic, including adding online sales and daily sanitizing of the business.
“I never saw the store so clean, and I’m a pretty clean guy,” Kuhn said.
He opened the business four years ago and said weathering the turmoil reaffirmed his plans to continue building the business.
“I feel really blessed during all of this trial by fire that I’m still here,” he said.
Valerie Schultz, owner/operator of the Ballyhoo Ice Cream/Sweet Shop in West Pittston, said the $12,000 she received helped her create a website to sell candy online and reach out to customers.
The business also launched a new delivery service and covered other expenses with the funding, she said.
“When we lost our seating, we had to completely change everything,” Schultz said.
All small businesses were in the same boat because the pandemic “surprised everybody,” she said.
“We’re doing OK now,” Schultz told the group. “We are proud to say that we were able to stay open the entire time because we used those funds to provide another way.”
Jessica Suda Baab, of the KISS Theater in Wilkes-Barre, said the $14,665 it received was a “weight off our shoulders” and evidence the county values the arts.
In addition to compensating for some revenue lost from cancelled ticketed performances, the county grant helped the theater group safely resume some in-person classes and add online ones, she said. These programs go beyond singing and dancing in front of an audience and give children a safe and inclusive atmosphere to “embrace what makes them unique,” she said.
Gene Brady, executive director of the Commission on Economic Opportunity, said the $77,000 his nonprofit received largely helped combat food insecurity and keep a growing army of volunteers safe.
“We’ve been busier than we ever have been as an organization because of the pandemic,” Brady said.
Approximately $35,700 went to 27 local youth sports organizations to ensure they were able to purchase safety equipment needed to play.
Bob Bertoni, district administrator for Little League 16/31, said 12,000 children in his districts were able to play baseball and softball because of the county funding, which covered thermometers, disinfectant, hand sanitizer and more balls required to reduce the potential for virus spread.
These supplies and experience navigating the pandemic will allow the next season to start in April, Bertoni said, emphasizing the value of sports.
“It is definitely part of the development process for our children,” Bertoni said. “It is so important we give our kids this outlet.”
The Mohegan Sun Arena received $633,849 from the county CARES funding to offset the loss of revenue from cancelled shows. Pedri praised the arena for hosting a temporary regional coronavirus testing site last year and for providing space to hold some socially-distanced county court trials.
He pointed to workers preparing the arena floor for the ice hockey season set to begin in February.
“Luzerne County is coming back. The arena is coming back,” he said.
County Council Chairman Tim McGinley said council supported a grant package that would help local groups and businesses to keep the community “alive.” He and Pedri praised county workers for completing the flood of additional work required for the grants amid their other duties and thanked state and federal legislators for bringing the money to the county.
Regional economic development organization Penn’s Northeast helped to administer the business and nonprofit portion of the program for the county, with assistance from the Community First Fund.
Penn’s Northeast President/CEO John Augustine said Wednesday the allocations were made in a “very fair and public way,” with the added transparency of an online recipient report.
To be eligible, businesses had to have a physical operation based in the county, 15 or fewer full-time employees and annual revenues of $500,000 or less prior to March 1, 2020.
Nonprofits had to be tax-exempt, have a primary physical operation in the county and attest that at least half of their annual pre-pandemic revenues came from programs or services provided to disabled or low/moderate-income county residents focused on homelessness, childcare, employment, transportation, health care, workforce development and/or food and housing security.
