OHSWEKEN — In his weekly update, Six Nations Elected Chief Mark Hill said the Six Nations of the Grand River Elected Council passed a motion to establish a Six Nations Business Relief fund.
Hill made the announcement via rounds on radio and social media Friday. More details on the fund are expected as the fund becomes available.
Hill said eligibility for Six Nations businesses to access federal emergency funding was limited to those who were previously clients of Two Rivers Community Development Centre and were registered with the Canada Revenue Agency.
Six Nations has an independent business registration as several on-reserve businesses do not participate in federal taxation regimes. There is also a large portion of the local economy that run cash businesses and do not qualify for federal help.
Hill also spoke during his briefing to encourage local business owners to give feedback on the proposed health and safety regulations and help SNGR to find creative solutions to mitigate the local spread of COVID-19.
A series of Zoom videoconferences were held online for local businesses to respond to the draft Six Nations Health and Safety Code of Conduct. The regulations include community standards for businesses ranging from variety stores to restaurants and laundromats — how business owners should provide safe environments for their employees and clientele.
Six Nations Elected Chief Mark Hill was on the call along with Six Nations lawyer Kim Thomas to gather feedback and answer questions from community members on the draft rules to reopen local businesses.
Feedback is still being sought by the elected council via an online survey on how the community should proceed with re-opening local access to Six Nations. That can be found online at https://www.sixnationscovid19.ca/volunteer/reopening-survey.
