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Biden Cabinet member visits Greenville’s Swamp Rabbit Cafe; Helene hurt small businesses

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Biden Cabinet member visits Greenville’s Swamp Rabbit Cafe; Helene hurt small businesses

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Following President Biden’s visit to the Carolinas last week to survey damage from Tropical Storm Helene, his administration continues to put boots on the ground in the Upstate, including local Greenville business Swamp Rabbit Café and Grocery.

Administrator of the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) Isabel Casillas Guzman visited the café Tuesday to meet with owners Mary Walsh and Jac Oliver and hear about their experience with the storm.

Swamp Rabbit Café and Grocery—affectionately called the Swamp by Walsh and Oliver—encourages visitors to “eat local and ride bikes.” Located a few steps off the Swamp Rabbit Trail, it sells a variety of groceries, drinks, and plants from local vendors throughout the Carolinas.

Guzman visited the kitchen, purchased chocolate from one of the Swamp’s North Carolina vendors and held a loaf of signature stecca bread while walking through the store. Walsh and Oliver pointed to some of the shelves as they walked by, noting that just a few short days ago, they were completely empty.

When the storm hit, the Swamp’s coffee shop had two-and-a-half feet of water inside. Walsh and Oliver worked quickly to sell what they could and donated part of their inventory to local fire departments, linemen, a hospital, and restaurants that helped feed people after Helene.

They lost power for three days, and though they used generators to get things up and running, their generators were stolen twice.

“We’re nothing compared to what Asheville people are suffering, but every day is crucial, and especially a weekend day where we do most of our business,” Walsh said, “We lost Friday, Saturday and Sunday, and then once we reopened, we didn’t have product to sell. It lingers for a long time.”

Despite the difficulties, Walsh and Oliver praised their staff and Greenville’s community. They said locals came out to sweep, offered up their generators and helped clean the area after flooding from the storm.

“I’ve been crying every day, like four times a day,” Oliver said as she listed how people helped in the days following Helene. “The power is out, so they need their generator. Instead, they brought it to us.”

Oliver also shouted out the Swamp Rabbit Café and Grocery staff and said vendors had offered them discounts to help get products back on the shelves.

“I think generally, everybody cares so much. They want to see us succeed, and they want to see all small businesses succeed,” Walsh said.

SBA can help small business owners recover

Guzman lauded Greenville residents’ responses and said the SBA can help small business owners get back on their feet after the storm.

“I think that small businesses, it represents all the positivity of hope and optimism always. You don’t start a business unless you’re going to have that grit and determination to keep on moving through. Really the community has rallied around this business and helping them recover quickly so they can get back to business,” she said. “But there has been disruption. There has been an impact to their bottom line, and I think the most important thing is to help them quickly recover so that they can sustain into the future.”

The SBA is part of the President’s cabinet and offers a loan program for small businesses affected by disaster, as well as homeowners and renters in certain cases.

SBA receives approve for $3 million in loans for SC

In South Carolina, the SBA has received approval to distribute $3 million in loans. According to a spokesperson for the SBA, $453,000 has already been distributed. The administration has received 52 applications.

Loan terms are up to 30 years and interest rates can be as low as 4% for businesses or 2.8% for homeowners and renters, Guzman said. The first 12 months are interest-free and don’t require a payment. Disaster loans cover losses not covered by insurance or the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).

Through the program, homeowners can access up to $500,000, renters can access up to $100,000 and businesses can receive up to $2 million.

The SBA works like a middleman, facilitating loans between borrowers and lenders. The lender provides the loan, and the SBA backs it.

“This is the way you can affordably rebuild a community,” Guzman said. “I want South Carolinians to know that the SBA is on the ground, scaling to make sure that we can support you. We have two centers as well as our online features.”

SBA has two Business Recovery Centers in SC

The SBA has two Business Recovery Centers in South Carolina – one in Lexington and one in Greenville. Customer service representatives are available at these locations to walk residents through the loan application process, answer questions, accept documents and provide application status checks.

Greenville’s recovery center is open Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Saturday from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. It’s located at the Next Innovation Center at 411 University Ridge.

People with physical property damage must submit their loan applications by Nov. 29, though businesses with economic injury must do so by June 30, 2025.

Congress must act to fund SBA

While the SBA has already received approval for several million to administer in South Carolina, money will run out soon without congressional action.

Last week, President Biden wrote a letter to Congress and asked members to act while in recess to fund the SBA. The SBA’s funding will likely run out before the end of the month, which means new offers can’t be given out.

Guzman said the administration has been requesting funds from Congress consistently and will continue, but added that the group offers various other services to business owners.

“I think that most importantly, they should know that SBA has a full suite of offerings to wrap around their businesses. We offer free advisory services in our district offices,” she said. “They can navigate whether it’s how to help their employees they’re dealing with unemployment, or how they can rebuild their businesses, increase marketing, increase market access opportunities.”

SBA recovery center appointments can be made online, though walk-ins are accepted. You can use the SBA’s disaster declaration search to see if you’re in an eligible area.

Sarah Swetlik covers business, growth and development for The Greenville News. Previously, she covered environmental issues and climate change. You can reach her at sswetlik@gannett.com or via X at @sarahgswetlik.

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