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Small Businesses Say Rescue Loans Come With Too Many Strings Attached
NPR
April 29, 2020
Christian Piatt finally got a loan to help rescue his brand-new bar and restaurant in Granbury, Texas.
But it wasn't easy.
He applied through the federal Paycheck Protection Program, which is meant to help small businesses threatened by the pandemic. One bank told him it couldn't lend through the program. Another told him he might have better luck elsewhere. The third approved his loan and he got the money.
Now he's wondering: How should he use his $34,000 loan?
"I understand in principle it's encouraging us to get people back to work," said Piatt, the co-owner of Brew Drinkery, which was forced to shut down only 51 days after opening. "But in practice, when you have a retail storefront that is not being allowed by local authorities to operate in the way that we had before, there should be some consideration to make it to account for that."
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