Business Impact Opportunity Fund

Denver Economic Development & Opportunity, in partnership with The Fax Partnership and Mile High United Way, is now accepting applications for grants up to $15,000 and technical assistance to businesses economically impacted by major public construction projects. While these infrastructure projects provide long-term benefits of improved mobility and livability, in the short-term they can disproportionately burden Denver’s small, neighborhood-serving businesses.

The current round of applications is focused on small businesses that have been impacted by the following city-funded construction project(s):

• East Colfax Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) Construction: East Colfax Avenue from Broadway to Colorado Blvd. for construction occurring November 2024 – June 2025.

• West Colfax Pedestrian Crossing & Transit Improvements: West Colfax Avenue from Irving Street to Sheridan Blvd. for construction occurring Q4 2024 to Q2 2025.
  
  

NOTE: Businesses operating on the 16^th Street Mall are not eligible for this BIO Fund program and should review its business support program offered at this link. 

About the Construction Stabilization Grant

This grant is intended to support small businesses that have been impacted by specified city-funded construction projects within 350 feet of their business location.

• Applicants may apply for a one-time grant
• The grant amount is based on the annual gross revenue tier
  • $7,500 for businesses with annual gross revenue equal to or less than $100,000
  • $15,000 for businesses with annual gross revenue greater than $100,000

The 2025 BIO Fund program is funded through the city's Investment Impact Special Revenue Fund, in partnership with Community Planning and Development (CPD), as well as federally funded through American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) dollars. This program continues to address specific challenges faced by small businesses that have been negatively impacted by the COVID-19 public health crisis and who, as a result, often more severely experience economic challenges and hardships. Business eligibility requirements apply.

A business must meet ALL of the following criteria to be eligible for grant consideration.

1. Be located in the City and County of Denver, in good standing with the Colorado Secretary of State’s office, and compliant with all city, state and federal licensing and taxing authorities.
   
   
2. Be engaged in activities that are legal under Colorado state law.
   
   
3. Your business is in one of the following eligible North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) codes:
   • 44 or 45: Retail
   • 71: Arts, Entertainment, and Recreation
   • 72: Accommodation and Food Services
   • 81: Other Services (except Public Administration). Please note: 81 includes, but is not limited to personal care services, laundry, auto repair and maintenance. This code is NOT a "default" for all other industries not listed above.
     
     For reference, you can access the NAICS codes database.
4. 2024 annual gross revenue between $30,000 and $5,000,000.
   
   
5. Demonstrate a 20% or greater revenue decline using a minimum 90-day consecutive revenue period comparing pre-construction revenue with during-construction revenue resulting from public construction impact.
   
   
6. This grant is intended to support small businesses that have been impacted by specified city-funded construction projects within 350 feet or less of their business location.
   
   
7. In operation and open to the public for a minimum of six months prior to the date of the submitted application.
   
   
8. If applicant is intending to close permanently, or if applicant closed during the application review process and does not intend to reopen, the applicant is no longer eligible, as the program’s primary goal is business preservation.

Before starting an application, be sure to review the 'Eligibility' tab as specific business requirements apply.  

Applications are now open. The deadline to apply is Tuesday, June 10, at 5 P.M.

Apply Here

The following documentation will be needed to complete this application: 

• Financial documentation evidencing your business’s 2024 tax year’s annual gross revenue.
  
  
• Financial documentation comparing a minimum consecutive 90-day pre-construction revenue period with a minimum consecutive 90-day during-construction revenue period resulting in a 20% or greater revenue decline. Similar revenue periods (that is year-over-year) are required to eliminate seasonality or other short-term increases/decreases in revenue.
  
  

Examples of acceptable financial documentation include the following: profit & loss or income statement, sales report, sales tax report, POS report, P2P payment app report, or IRS tax return transcript. Bank statements will not be accepted.

• Current certificate from the Colorado Secretary of State’s Office. You can obtain a Certificate of Good Standing or Certificate of Fact of Trade Name for your business at this link. If your certificate is expired or delinquent, you may update the status using the appropriate form found at this link. Search for your business name, click on the ID Number, select “Confirm” (authorized to make changes) and “File Periodic Report.” Call the Secretary of State's office if you need assistance at 303‐894‐2200 and press 2; or email: business@coloradosos.gov.
  
  
• Grant awards are based on a combination of factors. A completed application does not guarantee an award.

The following are some of the frequently asked questions the program has received. Information sessions and 1:1 application assistance are also available.  

• If my business received a previous BIO Fund grant, will that affect eligibility?
  • An individual business location would only be eligible for one BIO Fund grant per construction project. For example, a business along E Colfax Ave may receive one grant for BRT impact.
• If my business received financial assistance related to COVID, will that affect eligibility?
  • No. Eligibility is not affected by the receipt of other grants and loans provided as COVID relief for businesses.
• My business address is my home address, which is located outside of Denver city limits, but I operate a mobile business in the City and County of Denver. Am I still eligible for a grant?
  • A business operating as a mobile business is not eligible for the Construction Stabilization BIO Grant.
• I am an independent contractor, and my LLC is registered to my home address. Does that affect eligibility?
  • Independent contractors that have an LLC registered to their home address but who perform work at a business located within the specified geography are eligible to apply. For the Certificate of Good Standing, it is recommended that the applicant update their profile with the State of Colorado to show the business address where they work.
    
    This update would not need to be made prior to an application being submitted. It is recommended to make this update during the application review period to avoid any potential delays in receiving grant funds

• Can I apply for all my businesses if I have more than one location? 
• • Yes, you may apply for all your businesses operating in the specified construction project area(s) and meeting the eligibility criteria. You must complete a separate application for each business location by selecting "Add Another" in the application homepage.
  • The program provides for a maximum of two grants, one each to different legal entities sharing the same business owner. If one legal entity was awarded in one round (same owner) and the other legal entity (same owner) was not awarded, the business may apply in subsequent rounds (if offered) for the one not funded.
• I am a commercial property owner. Am I eligible?
  • Generally, BIO Fund support is intended for neighborhood-serving business operations and primary employers as opposed to businesses primarily engaged in real estate activities.
    
    BIO Fund will not accept applications where the property is unoccupied, and the owner alleges that they are unable to rent/lease property.
    
    Owner/Operators of a business location where other tenants’ revenue losses contributed to their loss of income are eligible for consideration and review. In circumstances where the business leases the space from a different legal business entity (i.e., leases the space to him/herself), the applicant is only eligible for consideration and review of the business operations, not the real estate entity.
• How do I calculate the 350-ft construction adjacency requirement if I lease space within a larger building?
  • If the public entrance to the actual leased space of the individual business is within 350 ft or less of the construction center line, then the business would qualify. It is the location of the interior entrance to the leased space, and not the exterior location of the building entrance, that is used to determine eligibility
• My business is located at the intersection of the specific geographic boundaries for the current grant round. Am I eligible?
  • Round 2 is focused on the geography from Broadway to Colorado Blvd. Businesses located on the west side of the intersection would qualify for Round 2. Businesses located on the east side of the intersection would qualify in the next grant round.
• My business has closed permanently or is at imminent risk of permanent closure. Does this affect my eligibility?
  • Businesses that have permanently closed are ineligible for this grant program. This includes businesses that may have closed during the application review process or award notification/disbursement process. Similarly, businesses that re-located to a location outside the program area during the review/award process are no longer eligible. The program's primary goal is business preservation; funding is directed towards businesses that remain operational at their current location.
• What is the minimum operating time required for grant eligibility? Are there exceptions for new businesses?
  • The standard requirement is that a business must be in active operations (open to the public) for a minimum of six months from the date the application is submitted.
    
    We understand that construction may have affected business start dates or locations. Therefore, an exception exists: businesses that relocated to E. Colfax Ave after the start of the pre-construction period (Q4 2023) OR started operations after construction began may still be eligible, even if they cannot show revenue loss at the same location pre-construction.
    
    To qualify under this exception, you must provide the financial forecasts or projections (pro forma) used to secure your initial business loan or investment. We will compare these projections (made without knowing the construction impact) to your actual revenues during construction to evaluate the revenue decline clearly attributable to the construction project.
• My business changed ownership. Does that affect eligibility?
  • Yes, a change in ownership significantly affects grant eligibility, which generally transfers to the current owner if specific conditions are met.
    
    Eligibility for the Current (New) Owner: The current owner may be eligible to apply for the grant if both of the following conditions are met:
    • Consistent Business Classification: The business continues to operate under the same or a similar industry classification and revenue stream as it did before the ownership change.
      • Example: A restaurant that is sold and continues to operate as a restaurant (even with a new brand or concept) would meet this condition. A restaurant that is sold and converted into a retail store would not.
      • If the ownership change results in a substantially different business type or revenue stream, the business under the new owner is considered a new entity for grant purposes and is not eligible under the previous owner's history.
    • Operational History: The business must have been operational for at least 6 months at the time of submitting the grant application.

  Example: Eligibility for the Former (Previous) Owner: The former owner is generally disqualified from receiving grant funds for the business they have sold. This is because the grant's intent and approved uses are tied to preserving the ongoing operations of the business.

  Example: Ownership Changes During the Application/Award Process: If the business ownership changes after an application has been submitted but before an award decision is made:

  • If Both Owners Apply: In the rare case both the former and current owners apply for the same business, eligibility priority goes to the current owner, provided they meet the standard eligibility criteria (including the conditions listed above).
  • If Only the Former Owner Applied: If the former owner applied before selling the business, their application will typically be disqualified upon notification of the sale, as they no longer operate the business targeted by the grant. The new owner would need to apply separately, meeting all eligibility requirements, including the 6-month operational rule.
• Will there be additional rounds if I miss this one?
  • Eligibility for this grant is tied to the impact of designated city-funded construction projects. Once impacted, your business generally has a 15-month window to apply, subject to the availability of funding. This includes a period of at least 3 months to gather data demonstrating the impact, followed by up to 12 months to submit your application.
    
    This 15-month timeframe is specific to the impact from a particular construction project. If you do not apply within this window for that specific impact, you will lose eligibility related to that project. To stay informed about any newly designated construction projects and other business support resources, please sign up for the DEDO (Denver Economic Development & Opportunity) newsletter.
• What is the expected timeline for receiving notice of the outcome of my application?
  • You can expect to learn the outcome of your application about four weeks after the application round closes.
• If awarded, how long will it take to receive funds?
  • Funds are typically deposited within ten business days once the awarded business has provided required documentation (W9, bank account information, evidence of current operations, photo ID).

• Are nonprofits eligible for this grant?
• • No, this program is specifically offered to small (for-profit) businesses only. 

• I am having issues logging in and/or creating a profile in the application portal. How can I fix this? 
• • The online application works best using Google Chrome. Apple products are not optimal devices but technical issues can be resolved by closing the webpage, clearing the cache, and continue using Google Chrome. Additionally, error messages may appear when there are some invalid characters in the email, so be sure there are no spaces before or after the email address. If the email was automatically entered by the browser, delete the email address and manual type it in correctly, to avoid the error.