A grant program developed by the city to help businesses affected financially by the COVID-19 pandemic has been expanded and will receive an additional $25 million dollars tomorrow, Mayor Kirk Caldwell said today.

“We have to help our small businesses stay in business,” Caldwell said. “They are the basic infrastructure of our economy.”

The City and County of Honolulu’s Small Business Relief and Recovery Program will be taken offline today and relaunched at noon tomorrow, the city’s Office of Economic Development Executive Director Ed Hawkins said during a press conference today.

Caldwell and Hawkins were joined at the press conference by Hawai’i Credit Union League President Dennis Tanimoto and Aloha Pacific Federal Credit Union President and CEO Vince Otsuka. A number of local credit unions are participating in the disbursement of funds through the program.

The Small Business Relief and Recovery Program was launched on May 18 and offered one-time $10,000 grants to qualified small businesses. The additional $25 million will be used to continue servicing applications to the program.

The press conference at Honolulu Hale is closed to the public, but is being streamed live online.

Watch the video above, or click here to watch via Caldwell’s Facebook page.