Just over half-a-million dollars was approved by the federal government to help businesses impacted by a blockade along Huron Church Road in Windsor earlier this year.
According to FedDev Ontario, all applications received have been reviewed and nearly $505,000 in funding was disbursed to 65 businesses impacted by the blockade in Windsor.
On April 1, $2.5-million in funding was announced by FedDev Ontario to provide small businesses with non-repayable contributions of up to $10,000 for costs not covered by other federal programs.
Initial allocations for support for businesses impacted by the blockades were determined by working with local organizations in the Windsor area to ensure that every eligible business impacted by the blockades would have access to support.
The application process, which is closed, saw submissions made to the West Windsor Small Business Relief Fund, administered by Invest WindsorEssex.
The approved applications included those from businesses in accommodation and food services, retail trade,health care and social assistance, transportation and warehousing, finance and insurance, educational service, and professional, scientific and technical service.
On Feb. 7, a group of people stopped along Huron Church Road heading to the Ambassador Bridge in Windsor, protesting COVID-19 restrictions and mandates, halting traffic until police officers moved them off the route on Feb. 13.
In the aftermath of the protest, barriers were put in place along Huron Church Road for several weeks to maintain the flow of traffic, but those barriers restricted access to a number of businesses along both sides of the busy route.
Around 240 businesses were identified as potentially being impacted by the blockade, but any businesses applying for the funding would need to meet the criteria set out in the application process.
Any funding that was not used was returned to FedDev Ontario.