Governor Roy Cooper announced during a press conference on Tuesday, Nov. 10 that the North Carolina Chamber of Commerce will begin awarding grants to full-service restaurants under its Mortgage, Utility, and Rent Relief (MURR) Program.

Applications for funding will open on Nov. 12 at 8 a.m., and the money will be awarded on a first-come, first-served basis. Restaurants are able to request four months of rent or mortgage interest from the program, up to $20,000 per restaurant. Each restaurant must currently employ fewer than 50 people, and restaurant groups can only apply for two locations.

Those who received other federal relief funding are eligible for funds, but restaurants cannot ask for funding of rent that has already been paid for by other programs, such as PPP money. Restaurants may receive a taxable direct payment of four months of rent or four months of mortgage interest between April and August 2020. Full service restaurants are not eligible to claim utility costs.

Businesses that receive the funding certify they expect to continue to operate their business after the pandemic. The MURR grants initially opened to restaurants that were forced to close during the first phase of North Carolina’s shutdown. Full-service restaurants are defined as “Establishments primarily engaged in providing food services to patrons who order and are served while seated (i.e., waiter/waitress service) and pay after eating.”

Applicants should be prepared to provide an EIN, most recent income tax return, and documentation of lease or mortgage obligations. Restaurants that opened in 2020 are eligible to apply.

Read more and apply for the program on Thursday morning here.

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