A Taste Of Economic Realities For Small Business Owners And A Glimpse At Reopening W.Va.

On this West Virginia Morning, business owners share their efforts to get emergency SBA loans during this coronavirus crisis. And Gov. Jim Justice lays out his plans to begin reopening the state.

West Virginia’s rates of new coronavirus cases are trending down, and as a result, Gov. Justice has announced a plan to reopen the state’s economy. The plan, which is expected to roll out over the course of the next three to six weeks, calls for ramping up testing, contact tracing and increasing supplies of protective gear. The plan also offers some guidelines on how businesses will reopen, and vague contingencies should an increase in cases be detected. Dave Mistich has more.

Many small businesses across West Virginia are trying to figure out how to keep the lights on during COVID-19. Some applied for the Economic Injury Disaster Loan to help with operations, others applied to the Paycheck Protection Program. We talked to more than a dozen small business owners about the application process.

We hear from five of them: Michael Irvin of Coal River Coffee in St. Albans; Teena Merlin of Gyspy Sisters Tattoos in Madison; Beth Bedway of East Wheeling Clayworks; Ken Downey of Kitchen and Bath in Morgantown; and Joy Malinowski, who owns the Billy Motel in Davis and the Cooper House Bed and Cocktail in Thomas. This audio postcard was produced by Molly Born. Music courtesy of Blue Dot Sessions.

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Support for our news bureaus comes from West Virginia University, Concord University, and Shepherd University.

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