An Innovative Model for Examining the Financial Impact of COVID-19 on Small Businesses in Durham

This report documents CSBDF’s partnership with the City of Durham to support small businesses recovering from the economic impacts of the COVID‑19 pandemic. While CDFIs are widely recognized for delivering emergency capital to small firms during times of crisis, this report highlights how CDFIs can also serve as effective local partners—providing technical assistance, small grants, and access to capital that help entrepreneurs stabilize and grow. By sharing our approach and outcomes, we contribute practical insights that other CDFIs and local governments can apply when designing small business programs.

Through this partnership—made possible by American Rescue Plan Act State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds—we provided business needs assessments, customized online technical assistance, and reimbursement‑based grant funding to a group of small business owners in Durham. We met or exceeded all program goals, including participation, course completion, grant distribution, and response to the program's exit survey. The report describes the challenges that entrepreneurs face, their professional development needs, how they used the grant funds, and their interest in accessing loan capital.

Our findings show that many Durham small businesses remain in recovery mode, with ongoing needs related to cash flow, capital access, and operational capacity. At the same time, exit survey results demonstrate the potential for online technical assistance to facilitate improved skills, confidence, and readiness for growth. As we transition into Phase II of the Durham Small Business Opportunity Fund, this report illustrates how targeted, cost‑effective partnerships between local governments and CDFIs can evolve from short‑term recovery efforts into long‑term strategies for building resilient local economies.

Read the Full Report:

Durham Partnership Final Report 2-5-26.pdf

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