Submitted by Haley Stafford, Middlesex County Chamber of Commerce
(February 11, 2025) — The application period for the Middlesex County Revitalization Commission’s 2025 Business Operating Grants Program will open online on February 15, 2025. The program, funded through the Connecticut Department of Economic and Community Development, offers grants of up to $25,000 to qualified small businesses throughout Middlesex County.
The 2025 application window — from February 15, 2025 to March 15, 2025 — is for the third year of a five-year program designed to provide financial and technical assistance to business owners so that they can continue operations and maintain—and grow—employment opportunities for Middlesex County residents. Applicants are encouraged to consider the way the requested funds will positively impact the growth and development of their business or alleviate the negative effects of any hardship currently being faced. The grant funding may be used for equipment and/or technology, leasehold improvements, and other fixed costs, including expenses related to supply chain disruptions, increased employee travel time/mileage, higher vendor costs, loss of income, and additional marketing expenses.
For-profit businesses that apply must be based and have operated in a Middlesex County town for at least twenty-four months, have no more than fifty employees, less than eight million dollars in revenue, and be in good standing with all municipal, state and federal authorities. A complete list of eligibility and application requirements can be found on the Commission’s website at https://mxcrc.org.
“We are so pleased to continue offering these grants to our County’s small businesses,” said MCRC Chair Darlene Briggs of Westbrook. “We have seen transformative growth in the businesses that received grants in 2023 and 2024, and we anticipate considerable interest in this year’s grant opportunity.”
A series of virtual information sessions will be offered for businesses interested in applying. For more details, please visit https://mxcrc.org.
The Middlesex County Revitalization Commission was created by a special act of the Connecticut General Assembly in 1993. Its mission is to encourage and stimulate economic development in Middlesex County by providing low-interest loans and/or matching grants to small and mid-sized businesses in the region. The members of the MCRC are the chief executive official, or a designee, from each of the fifteen towns in Middlesex County, plus a representative from the Middlesex County Chamber of Commerce. Visit https://mxcrc.org for more information.
