COVID-19 Info & Resources
FUNDING & RESOURCE GUIDE
As COVID-19 continues to be a part of our everyday lives, we are all faced with challenges and changes; and this includes funding programs, testing, restrictions and vaccinations. So, we have developed a new guide (Jan. 2022) that includes new &/or expanded funding programs and other resources for you and your business. This new resource can be found HERE.
We are grateful that our 3 levels of government are responding quickly to offer relief for businesses and individuals! We also are hearing that there are so many opportunities, it can be cumbersome finding out what’s out there! If you are toggling between government websites to find out what relief programs are available we may be able to help.
We have this FUNDING GUIDE that was updated last year (2021) to include the latest programs, at the time from all three levels of government. Each program listed has a link to its Federal, Provincial or Municipal site for more information about it. Links can be found by moving your cursor over Name of the Program, Eligibility or Apply for each program. Although these programs are now completed, it may still be a valuable resource.
ADVOCACY – Communications
An important mandate of all Business Improvement Associations is advocacy; being a voice for their members. At times during this pandemic, the Village on Main in partnership with the other BIDs in Halifax and across the province, it was necessary to communicate with members key of the Government; both provincially and federally or the media. Here you will find copies of some of these communications.
Letter to Premier Houston – February 7, 2022
Letter to Premier Houston – December 16, 2021
Letter to Premier Rankin – June 11, 2021
Letter to Prime Minister & Cabinet – June 6, 2021
Letter to Premier Rankin – May 27, 2021
Letter to Prime Minister and Cabinet Ministers – August, 2020
PPE SUPPLIERS
Now that the reopening dates for many businesses have been announced, we have put together a list of PPE Suppliers that can be used as you start your purchasing of PPEs. The list is not exhaustive, as there are other companies that also provide these items. The list is meant as a place to start and hopefully provide some additional options for suppliers.
WEBINARS
Over the past couple of months, we have hosted a couple of webinars for the Business Community.
“Managing Success through Change and Uncertainty during a global pandemic.” How to thrive, motivate and lead! was presented by Bryan Fader. Are you wondering what it’s going to be like with your PPE and new protocol in your work place? This webinar is not about PPE’s but about how to stay motivated through changing times and come back stronger. If that’s what you’re interested in, read on.
Bryan Fader is an Adult Learning Strategist and will share three tenets that apply to us all, about the new workplace during a pandemic. These three principals will help you rethink your frame of mind during a time when Nova Scotians will be switching from “Stay The Blazes Home” to going out to revisit shops and services in a new way. SLIDES
“Preparing for the New Normal” was presented by Marc Andre Lavoie, owner of Risk Marcker Inc., an industrial hygiene consulting firm based here in the Village on Main. PRESENTATION DESCRIPTION – Are you wondering what the New Normal is going to look like for your business? Whether you are one of the businesses mandated to close or interested in ways that your workplace can limit the spread of COVID-19, this session is for you. BIO of Marc Andre Lavoie
GRATITUDE
On behalf of our 170 plus members, we thank you for your loyalty to our businesses, services and your friendship. We hope you can continue to support our many businesses and service agencies in the following ways:
…by calling ahead to the service or business to see if they are open, have adjusted hours, have gift certificates or added online services
…by purchasing gift certificates even if you can’t use them right away.
…by supporting them on social media
…by reaching out to other “customers” you have become accustomed to seeing at their location and forming an online community to keep in touch
COMMUNITY
We know that the three things with greatest potential to be strained during the coronavirus pandemic are our health, our finances and our contact with others.
Health: There is a lot of information available about staying safe, mostly related to frequently washing your hands and social distancing. We hope you are all taking these tips seriously and remain well and safe, at home. Stay tuned to updates mandated by Dr. Strang and the Nova Scotia Health Authority
Finances: We are sharing everything we hear about government relief for businesses and employees. There is a new group, the Nova Scotia Business Labour Economic Coalition (NSBLEC) led by the Chamber of Commerce established to address these specific concerns. We are connected by feeding concerns from our members to advocate for them and providing updates from the group. We have also been sharing and updating government relief efforts on our social media.
CONNECT WITH OTHERS
We want to help you stay in touch with friends, family or our member customers beyond a one on one phone call. We encourage our Village on Main customers, community or clientele to stay connected; the neighbourhood group, the church community, the group that meets at Tim Hortons, the parents that used to get together while their children are in school or at recreation programs, etc.
Besides telephone calls, there are three options:
…Use one of the many free versions of video conferencing to connect. They are all good but each as its own limitations.
…Pay for a video conferencing service with more options to reach more people, longer conversations, recording, captioning, etc.
…If you are not using a free service or a paid service because you are not familiar with them or don’t want to pay for one, we can offer a free account to our online video service to our members or their friends and customer base. It offers more than the free versions and allows recording, captioning, over 200 people to gather at once, etc. We can offer a tutorial and walk you through it if you need assistance. Please let us know if you are interested by contacting us at welcome@villageonmain.ca to tell us what your group is and how you are connected to us or our members.
Networking events have always been popular so we’d like to host them online via video conferencing. We are planning on setting up a video conferencing networking for members of The Village on Main to hear about their needs and how we can help. We will also reach out to our friends and host an open networking event on the scheduled third Wed to stay in touch with our followers and supporters outside of the Village on Main and hear their concerns to see if there are gaps or success stories among government relief efforts.