A Disaster Loan Outreach Center opened Thursday at the Solvang Superior Court offices, 1745 Mission Drive, Solvang.
Hours are 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesdays through Fridays and 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturdays.
This DLOC is being established by the U.S. Small Business Administration to meet the needs of businesses and community members impacted by the January storms.
SBA encourages businesses of all sizes, nonprofits, homeowners and renters to visit the DLOC, where customer service representatives can answer questions about the disaster loan program. Representatives also can provide help with completing disaster loan applications.
Previously, a DLOC opened in Orcutt. It’s at the Orcutt Union School District office, 500 Dyer St., where hours are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Mondays through Fridays.
Spanish, American Sign Language and other translation services are available at both sites.
According to a news release, SBA has made the following modifications to provide consistent and equitable relief to every disaster loan recipient:
— First payment on a loan is due 12 months from the date of initial disbursement.
— The interest rate during the initial deferment period is 0% for 12 months from the date of initial disbursement.
— SBA provides low-interest, long-term loans for physical and economic damage caused by a declared disaster.
There’s a variety of home and personal property, business and economic injury loans for which community members may be eligible.
To be considered for all forms of disaster assistance, impacted community members must register with the Federal Emergency Management Agency at www.disasterassistance.gov. FEMA representatives will also be at the Disaster Loan Outreach Centers to assist with application submittals and answer questions.
The SBA deadline to apply for help for property damage is March 16. The SBA deadline to apply for assistance for economic injury is Oct. 16.
Applicants may also call SBA’s Customer Service Center at 800-659-2955 or email disastercustomerservice@sba.gov for more information on SBA disaster assistance If you’re hard of hearing or deaf or have a speech disability, dial 7-1-1 to access telecommunications relay services.
You can register for emergency alerts at www.readysbc.org and receive the alerts via text, phone call and email.
email: kzehnder@newspress.com
