2013-R-01 RESOLUTION NO. 2013-R-01
A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY OF EDGEWATER,
FLORIDA, PROVIDING A NON-RESIDENTIAL RENT
ASSISTANCE PROGRAM FOR ELIGIBLE NEW OR
EXPANDING EXISTING BUSINESSES; REPEALING
RESOLUTIONS IN CONFLICT HEREWITH; PROVIDING
FOR SEVERABILITY AND APPLICABILITY AND
ESTABLISHING AN EFFECTIVE DATE.
WHEREAS, the City Council of the City of Edgewater is interested in encouraging local
businesses to remain within the City and in attracting future economic development and growth.
WHEREAS, the City Council has established procedures herein whereas the non-
residential rent assistance can be offered to eligible new or expanding existing businesses.
WHEREAS, the monthly amount authorized per business shall be one-half of their
monthly rent and no greater than the amount of five hundred dollars ($500) and in no case shall
exceed the amount of six thousand dollars ($6,000.00) annually.
WHEREAS, for a business to be eligible they shall have a business plan which has been
reviewed by the Small Business Development Center (SBDC) and shall be employing a
minimum of two (2) full time equivalent W-2 employees whose wages are reported to the State
and Federal government.
NOW, THEREFORE, be it resolved by the City Council of the City of Edgewater,
Florida:
Section 1. The City Council of the City of Edgewater declares that the procedures
established herein (attached hereto and incorporated by reference as Exhibit "A"), are applicable
for the offering of the rent assistance to eligible non-residential businesses.
Section 2. Conflicting Provisions. All resolutions or parts of resolutions in conflict
herewith are hereby repealed.
Section 3. Severability. If any portion of this resolution is for any reason held or
declared to be unconstitutional, inoperative, or void, such holding shall not affect the remaining
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portions of this resolution. If this resolution or any provisions thereof shall be held to be
inapplicable to any person, property, or circumstances, such holding shall not affect its
applicability to any other person, property or circumstance.
Section 4. Adoption and Effective Date. This resolution shall take effect upon
adoption.
After Motion to approve with stipulation that it be limited to two (2) businesses this
first coming year and the funds be allocated from the Team Volusia funding along with a
scriveners error by Councilman Ignasiak with Second by Councilwoman Power the vote on this
resolution held on January 7, 2013,was as follows:
AYE NAY
Mayor Mike Thomas X
Councilwoman Christine Power X
Councilwoman Gigi Bennington X
Councilman Mike Ignasiak X
Councilman Gene Emter X
PASSED AND DULY ADOPTED this 7th day of January, 2013.
ATTEST: CITY COUNCIL OF THE
CI r Y OF OGAII R, F " O 'IDA
‘.\if})c-AN■liL 1\1: ..Armakirl MINS
Bonnie Wenzel Mike i o_mas
City Clerk Mayor
Robin L. Matusick
Paralegal
For the use and reliance only by the City of Edgewater, Approved by the City Council of the City of Edgewater
Florida. Approved as to form and legality by: at a meeting held on this 7th day of January,2013 under
Aaron R. Wolfe,Esquire Agenda Item No. 8e.
City Attorney
Doran, Sims, Wolfe&Kundid
2013-R-01 2
EXHIBIT "A"
NON-RESIDENTIAL RENT ASSISTANCE PROGRAM
I. INTRODUCTION
The Non-Residential Rent Assistance Program provides eligible new or expanding existing
Edgewater businesses with rent payment assistance. The goal of the program is to provide
incentives for businesses to locate in Edgewater, or grow and expand their existing businesses.
New businesses and growing businesses provide employment in the City as well as provide for
additional goods and services to our community.
The incentives provided through this program are one of the many ways the City of Edgewater is
investing in its economic future. By requiring that the applicants have sound business plans and
are creating a minimum level of jobs, the City is better positioning itself for a return on our
investment.
The program provides an incentive for eligible new businesses as well as eligible existing
businesses that are expanding. In this way, the City is addressing both business recruitment and
retention. It also helps Edgewater property owners by filling unoccupied space with a multi-year
(two-year minimum) lease.
II. PROGRAM
The Non-Residential Rent Assistance Program provides eligible businesses with rent payment
assistance for a maximum of twelve (12) months. Eligible businesses may receive up to one-half
of their monthly rent or $500, whichever is less, for twelve (12) months of a multi-year lease.
The lease must be structured so that there is a minimum of one year remaining on the lease after
the assistance ends. The maximum total assistance per business shall not exceed $6,000.
The Non-Residential Rent Assistance Program budget will be considered annually and if
budgeted, recipients will be awarded on a first-come, first-served basis. Submitting an
application for consideration in the program is not a guarantee of funding or approval.
III. ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS
Applicants for the Non-Residential Rent Assistance Program must meet all of the following
requirements in order to be considered as eligible to receive funding:
1. The business location must be within the City limits of Edgewater.
2. The business shall be a targeted business and shall not fall into one of the following
categories:
a. Adult Entertainment;
b. Car Wash;
c. Mini Warehouse;
d. Night Club/Lounge/Bar;
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e. Outdoor Storage;
f. Pawn Shop;
g. Pool Hall/Billiards;
h. Places of Worship (and church schools);
i. Salvage Yards; or
j. Tattoo Parlor/Body Piercing Studios.
3. The business shall be located on property zoned non-residential. Home-based businesses
are not eligible.
4. The business must be properly licensed to operate within the City of Edgewater and
Volusia County.
5. Both new and expanding existing Edgewater businesses are eligible for the rental
assistance; however, the following requirements shall apply:
a. A new business shall be defined as moving to Edgewater or being in operation in
Edgewater for less than six (6) months prior to applying for the program. A
home-based business will be considered a new business if it is moving into a non-
residentially zoned location and applies for the assistance within six (6) months of
beginning operations within the new location.
b. An expanding existing business shall be defined as being in operation in
Edgewater in a non-residentially zoned location for six (6) months or longer.
c. A new business shall have a business plan which has been reviewed by the Small
Business Development Center (SBDC) with a letter indicating the business plan is
viable.
d. A new business shall employ a minimum of two (2) full-time equivalent W-2
employees whose wages are reported to the State and Federal government. The
business owner may count toward one of the required job positions. For the
purposes of this program, a full-time equivalent employee is defined as working a
minimum of thirty-two (32) hours per week and earning, at a minimum, the
prevailing minimum wage. The business must maintain the minimum two (2)
employees each month that it receives the rent assistance. New businesses should
show an attempt to hire Edgewater residents to fulfill this requirement (i.e., copy
of job advertisement).
e. An expanding existing business shall have a business plan which has been
reviewed by the Small Business Development Center (SBDC) with a letter
indicating the business plan is viable.
f. An expanding existing business must be expanding to occupy at least 1.5 times
the square footage of the existing business location.
g. An expanding existing business shall also be adding a minimum of two (2) full-
time equivalent W-2 employees whose wages are reported to the State and
Federal government. The business owner may not count toward one of the
required job positions. For the purposes of this program, a full-time equivalent
employee is defined as working a minimum of thirty-two (32) hours per week and
earning, at a minimum, the prevailing minimum wage. The expanding business
must maintain the minimum two (2) additional employees each month that it
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receives the rent assistance. Expanding existing businesses should show an
attempt to hire Edgewater residents to fulfill this requirement (i.e., copy of job
advertisement).
6. The business must sign a multi-year lease, such that there is a minimum of one-year in
the lease agreement beyond the expiration of the rental assistance under this program.
IV. TERMS AND CONDITIONS
1. A lease under the requirements of this program shall define the landlord-tenant
relationship and, at a minimum, provide the following information:
a. A specific description of the space being rented including square footage and a
drawing of the space.
b. Description of the utilities that the tenant is responsible for.
c. Rental rate and deposits, along with terms of the lease and methodology for future
rent increases.
d. Responsible party for interior and exterior repairs and/or improvements.
e. Insurance requirements.
f. Conditions of lease termination.
g. Consequences of default on the lease.
2. Rent assistance, if approved, will not be paid until all construction has ended, a Business
Tax Receipt and Certificate of Use are issued, and the business is open for operation.
3. The City will issue reimbursement on a quarterly basis to the rent assistance program
applicant, upon receipt and verification that the monthly payments have been made to the
landlord and have been cleared by the bank and verification of the two full-time
equivalent employees.
4. The responsibility for all rental payments is between the contracted parties to the lease.
The City neither bears nor accepts any responsibility for payment of rent at any time, nor
penalties incurred for the late arrival of payments by any party.
5. The Non-Residential Rent Assistance Program may only be used one time by any one
specific business entity or business owner.
6. The City reserves the right to approve or deny any Non-Residential Rent Assistance
Program application and to discontinue reimbursement payments under the program at
any time at its sole discretion if it believes the applicant no longer meets the requirements
of the program or has not kept the rent payments current.
V. PROCEDURES FOR APPLICATION AND APPROVAL
1. Application Process
a. All applicants are strongly encouraged to meet with the City's Economic
Development Coordinator before submitting an application. Funding requests
will not be considered until all required documentation is submitted to the City.
Application packages must include the following documentation:
i. Complete and signed application.
ii. Copy of Business Tax Receipts from Volusia County and Edgewater.
iii. Copy of the corporate documents for the applying business entity.
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iv. Copy of executed or proposed multi-year commercial lease agreement.
v. Letter from SBDC indicating that the company's business plan,
qualifications and experience of the business owners, and list of jobs to be
created (including job descriptions, pay range and hours), have been
reviewed and found viable.
2. For approved applications, leases must be executed within thirty (30) days of the City
approval or the assistance will be deemed terminated.
3. Rent assistance payments will be reimbursed to the recipients on a quarterly basis
beginning the first full month that the business is open for operations at the approved
location subsequent to the City approval.
4. A maximum of twelve (12) consecutive monthly rent payments will be reimbursed to the
approved applicant. In order to receive quarterly rent reimbursement, the applicant must
submit a written request for that quarter's reimbursement payment along with:
a. The Florida Department of Revenue Employers Quarterly Report or, for sole
proprietorships, partnerships, and s-corporations, copies of all cancelled salary
checks or proof of direct deposits for each full time equivalent employee for each
month within that specific quarter.
b. City staff will conduct a site visit before the assistance payments begin in order to
verify that the business is in operation. Staff may also conduct unannounced site
visits periodically in order to ensure compliance with the terms of the assistance
agreement.
5. The receipt of past payments is no guarantee of future payments. The City shall retain
the right to discontinue rent assistance payments at any time according to its sole and
absolute discretion.
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