As our community, State and Nation grapple with the impact of COVID-19, I want to share with you how the City of Brownsville is responding to the changes demanded by public health best practices.

For the City of Brownsville, our top priority is the health and safety of our community. We are working quickly to implement measures to protect citizens from COVID-19 and provide the best information available.

Keep visiting BTXcares.com frequently for updates and resources.

How has your business been impacted by COVID-19? The Brownsville Community Improvement Corporation (BCIC), the City of Brownsville, and The Brownsville Chamber of Commerce are seeking to help employers and our workforce in Brownsville, Texas, respond to the challenges of the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic. We need to take steps to keep jobs and businesses going, as well as protect health in our community. Information is changing often, and updates will be made here daily. We ask readers to rely on official sources first and foremost, we repost some of that info here, in addition to BCIC's recommended steps.

The Greater Brownsville Incentives Corporation (GBIC) is a publicly-funded organization created in 1992 to help companies establish or expand operations in the Brownsville area. To strengthen the local economy, we work with the community to support local business owners, entrepreneurs, and startups.

Small businesses are the foundation of our communities and our economy. Employing nearly half the American workforce, companies like yours keep our neighborhoods running and make them feel like home. We know you’re facing multiple challenges right now, and every dollar counts. Funded by corporate and philanthropic partners, the Save Small Business Fund is a collective effort to provide $5,000 grants to as many small employers as we can. We hope these supplemental funds will help you get through the next days and weeks.

To our Square community:

We’re all facing unique challenges right now, and for business owners, the stakes are particularly high. We want to offer support and help in the ways we can.

We are waiving all software subscription fees for the month of April for existing sellers who currently use Square Appointments, Retail, Restaurants, Loyalty, Team Management, Payroll, Marketing, and Square Online Store. Square will manage the process for you—there’s no need to do anything. This is in addition to refunding March subscription fees.

We launched a local business directory, giveandgetlocal.com, to make it easier for customers to find and support Square businesses in their community. Customers can buy digital gift cards from businesses that have set up eGift Cards, and also search for businesses that offer pickup and delivery through Square Online Store.

We’re with you. Business owners like you are the heart of Shopify, and we always want to do everything in our power to support you. Read on to learn about the actions we’re taking, get answers to your questions, and access resources to help you navigate your business during this challenging time.

Together, we’ll make it through.

We know that your business may be experiencing disruptions resulting from the global outbreak of COVID-19. We’ve heard that a little financial support can go a long way, so we are offering $100M in cash grants and ad credits to help during this challenging time.

The global pandemic caused by the Coronavirus (COVID-19) that has impacted nearly every corner of the world and disrupted daily life has been especially hard on independent local businesses. Main street businesses are such an important part of who we are as a country. They play an integral role in our economy and our society – and right now they are struggling. The rapid spread of COVID-19 has led to critical social-distancing measures that are keeping people homebound in an effort to flatten the curve. While those efforts are incredibly important for the greater good, these sudden changes in consumer behavior have had a devastating impact on local businesses, particularly restaurants and bars. Our data shows that over the past week, U.S. consumer interest for restaurants has fallen by 54%, and for nightlife businesses by 69%.

To get through this challenging and uncertain time, it’s important that we all come together as a community — from corporations to organizations and government entities — to support one another, and to help lift those hit hardest by the impact of this pandemic. And we want to do our part to help.