Crain's New York - November 5, 2012 - (Page 22)

SMALL BUSINESS Gowanus entrepreneurs in shock after Sandy Not quite waterfront, but canal area got hit just as hard. Artists, musicians take stock T BY ANDREW J. HAWKINS he 10-foot-high wall of toxic water showed no mercy. It surged over the lip of the Gowanus Canal and crashed through the wall at Serett Metal Works, upending a three-ton pile of steel scraps. It broke through the door to the New York Art Foundry, destroying irreplaceable works of art. It punched through to Savaria Studios, a rehearsal space and recording studio struggling musicians could book for $200 a day. “It’s hard,” said Tamas Vajda, the owner of Savaria Studios. “I’m still taking it all in.” While much of the destruction GOWANUS INTERRUPTUS: The storm destroyed valuable pieces at the New York Art Foundry. To sign up for Crain’s SMALL BUSINESS newsletter, go to www.crainsnewyork.com/smallbiz. from Sandy was contained to shorefront property, this small patch of Gowanus was hit just as hard when the storm pushed the eponymous canal’s waters onto land. Other business owners in this up-and-coming industrial section of Brooklyn, which lies in the shadow of the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway adjacent to the Ninth Street bridge, were similarly stunned by the flooding. ‘In shock’ “I was, like, in shock,” said Paige Tooker, owner of the New York Art Foundry. Before Sandy, Ms. Tooker made her name crafting highly visible projects like Harlem’s 12-foot marble memorial to Adam Clayton Powell Jr., and the wrought-iron clocks at City Hall. She was in contract with the New York state Senate for another project. But 12 hours after the storm hit, Ms. Tooker was just another flood victim, picking through the pieces of her former life. “I’m worried about my employees,” she said. She has five: a matte finisher, a welder and three mold makers. Mud caked her warehouse. A wax art project had dissolved into a puddle. Large pieces of machinery littered the floor, including a welder and Ms. Tooker’s $12,000 furnace. The $15,000 compressor had flipped over. She estimated the damage to be at least $100,000. Ms.Tooker said she was used to a little flooding from the canal, which was built in a swampy area and named for the Indian tribe that once roamed the area. During Tropical Storm Irene, she got about six inches of water. But that was nothing compared with Sandy. Using a broom handle, she marked the waterline on the wall—over five feet high. Ms. Tooker couldn’t say whether she had insurance. She might try to call FEMA.She couldn’t quite focus on the task of recovery. It was too much to absorb. “I don’t know if they’ll help,” she said. “But I might try.” $100K ‘Everything is piled up’ At Savaria Studios, Darcy Macrae checked his drum kit for damage. Born in Canada, Mr. Macrae moved to New York to make his name on Broadway. His drumming can ESTIMATED amount of damage be heard in hit shows like The incurred by the Lion King, New York Art Foundry Mamma Mia and Wicked. But Sandy made no exception for musicians either. “Everything is just piled up,” Mr. Macrae said after inspecting his practice space. “Amps, drums, guitars.” Mr. Vajda couldn’t say how he planned to rebuild his business.The wounds were too fresh, the clean-up too daunting. But one thing was clear: “Irene was nothing compared to this,” he said. SANDY SURVIVAL GUIDE georgia kral Where you can find help Help is available for small businesses that need aid in Sandy’s wake. Below is a list of resources. In these first few days, document your losses by taking photographs and notes. Make sure you keep your receipts for purchases you’re making now to rebuild your business. ● If you need electric generators, pumps or cleanup kits: Small Business Development Centers. A LIST OF USEFUL WEBSITES Agility Recovery Solutions: www.agilityrecovery.com Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce resource guide: www.ibrooklyn.com/news_events/storm_recovery_information.aspx Disaster cleanup: www.sba.gov/content/disaster-cleanup Disaster resource guide from the IRS for individuals and businesses: www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p2194.pdf FEMA registration: www.disasterassistance.gov FEMA’s flood insurance program: www.fema.gov/national-flood-insurance-program IBHS Open for Business: www.disastersafety.org. Tips on post-Sandy recovery, including how to avoid contractor scams New York Small Business Development Centers: www.nyssbdc.org Online application for an SBA disaster home or business loan: https://disasterloan.sba.gov/ela Ready.gov: The site has a variety of publications for download covering various topics about planning and preparation for disasters and emergencies. Small Business Administration: www.sba.gov 40,000 square feet of warehouse space at the terminal that can be used for this purpose. Call 311 and ask for NYC Business Solutions, or send in a contact request via www.nyc.gov/html/sbs/nycbiz/ html/contact/manager.shtml. The Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce is offering workspace in its offices at 25 Elm Place in downtown Brooklyn through the end of the year. Contact Veronica Harris at vharris@brooklynchamber.com or call (718) 875-1000, ext. 127, for more information. ● Contact information for private insurance companies: Allstate. Customers can call (800) 54- The Queens Chamber of Commerce and the Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce are soliciting supplies from chambers nationwide. Call (718) 898-8500 in Queens or (718) 875-1000 in Brooklyn to tell them what you need and find out if they have items for distribution. ● If your small business needs a loan: SBA loans. The federal Small Business Administration offers loans of up to $2 million in disaster areas. They are available to businesses regardless of size. Interest rates on the 30-year terms are typically 4% for businesses and 3% for nonprofits. To apply online, go to https:// disasterloan.sba.gov/ela. Loan application forms can also be downloaded from www.sba.gov. Completed applications should be mailed to U.S. Small Business Administration, Processing and Disbursement Center, 14925 Kingsport Road, Fort Worth, TX 76155. Once the application is submitted, the SBA takes 10 days to respond, according to a spokeswoman. However, gathering the required materials is often difficult for small businesses. If you need help completing your SBA loan application, try visiting one of these centers in person: The main Web page is www.asbdcus.org. You can find locations of the New York Small Business Development Centers at www.nyssbdc.org. SBA’s Women’s Business Centers. See www.sba.gov/content/womensbusiness-centers. SCORE. Mentors deliver free, confidential, valuable advice for business needs. See www.score.org/mentors. For the nearest location, visit www.score.org/chapters-map. 659-2955 or send an email to disastercustomerservice@sba.gov. SBS loans. The city’s Department of Small Business Services has $5 million available to loan to small businesses. Amounts per business are capped at $10,000. For more information, call 311 and ask for NYC Business Solutions,or send in a contact request via www.nyc.gov/html/ sbs/nycbiz/html/contact/manager .shtml.You can also locate one of the NYC Business Solutions Centers, listed at www.nyc.gov/html/sbs/ nycbiz/html/contact/locations .shtml. They are: ● 400 E. Fordham Road, seventh floor, Bronx, NY 10458; (718) 960-7910 ● 9 Bond St., fifth floor, Brooklyn, NY 11201; (347) 296-8021 ● 79 John St., New York, NY SBA’s Office of Disaster Assistance Customer Service Center. Call (800) ● 168-25 Jamaica Ave., second 10038; (212) 618-8914 floor, Jamaica, NY 11432; (718) 577-2148 ● 120 Stuyvesant Place, third floor, Staten Island, NY 10301; (718) 285-8400 ● 215 W. 125th St., sixth floor, New York, NY 10027; (917) 493-7243 ● 560 W. 181st St., second floor, New York, NY 10033; (212) 928-3400 Homeowners and renters can apply for grants and loans by registering online at www.disasterassistance.gov or by mobile device at m.fema.gov. Those websites can also be used by small businesses to begin their loan applications. If online or mobile access is unavailable, applicants should call the FEMA toll-free help line at (800) 621-3362. The Red Cross provides for thousands of displaced residents through a network of emergency shelters. If you need assistance, you can find the nearest shelter by going to http://app.redcross.org/nss-app/ or by calling (877) 733-2767. Short-term “swing” office space at Brooklyn Army Terminal is available free of charge for a month. NYCEDC has approximately ● If you need space: ● If your employees need help: STORM, go online to www.allstate .com/claims/report-claim.aspx or through Farmers Insurance Group, including subsidiaries Foremost Insurance, 21st Century and Bristol West, should immediately contact their agent or call Farmers’ 24-hour claims hotline, (800) 435-7764. Geico. If you need to report a claim, visit www.geico.com/claims/report or call (800) 841-3000. The Hartford. The firm has set up a catastrophe information center for its customers. Call (800) 243-5860 or go online to www.thehartford.com for more information. Travelers. You can report a claim online at www.travelers.com/claim/ emergency.aspx or call (800) 2524633 for personal insurance or (800) 238-6225 for business insurance. Farmers. Customers with insurance contact their agent. 22 | Crain’s New York Business | November 5, 2012 http://www.crainsnewyork.com/smallbiz http://www.agilityrecovery.com http://www.ibrooklyn.com/news_events/storm_recovery_information.aspx http://www.seba.gov/content/disaster-cleanup http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p2194.pdf http://www.disasterassistance.gov http://www.asbdc.us.prg http://www.fema.gov/national-flood-insurance-program http://www.asbdc.us.prg http://www.disastersafety.org http://www.nyssbdc.org http://www.nyssbdc.org http://www.sba.gov/content/womens-business-centers http://www.sba.gov/content/womens-business-centers https://disasterloan.sba.gov/ela http://www.Ready.gov http://www.score.org/mentors http://www.score.org/chapters-map http://www.seba.gov http://www.disasterassistance.gov http://m.fema.gov http://disasterloan.sba.gov/ela http://disasterloan.sba.gov/ela http://www.nyc.gov/html/sbs/nycbiz/html/contact/manager.shtml http://www.sba.gov http://www.nyc.gov/html/sbs/nycbiz/html/contact/manager.shtml http://www.nyc.gov/html/sbs/nycbiz/html/contact/manager.shtml/contact/manager.shtml http://www.nyc.gov/html/sbs/nycbiz/html/contact/manager.shtml/contact/manager.shtml http://www.geico.com/claims/report http://www.nyc.gov/html/sbs/nycbiz/html/contact/manager.shtml/contact/manager.shtml http://www.nyc.gov/html/sbs/nycbiz/html/contract/locations.shtml http://www.nyc.gov/html/sbs/nycbiz/html/contract/locations.shtml http://app.redcross.org/nss-app/ http://www.nyc.gov/html/sbs/nycbiz/html/contract/locations.shtml http://www.thehartford.com http://www.travelers.com/claim/emergency.aspx http://www.travelers.com/claim/emergency.aspx http://www.allstate.com/claims/report-claim.aspx http://www.allstate.com/claims/report-claim.aspx

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Crain's New York - November 5, 2012

IN THE BOROUGHS
IN THE MARKETS
THE INSIDER
BUSINESS PEOPLE
EDITORIAL
GREG DAVID
REAL ESTATE DEALS
REPORT: EDUCATION
CLASSIFIEDS
FOR THE RECORD
DIGITAL NEW YORK
SMALL BUSINESS
NEW YORK, NEW YORK
SOURCE LUNCH
OUT AND ABOUT
SNAPS

Crain's New York - November 5, 2012