Gov. Charlie Baker, Lt. Gov. Karyn Polito announce $30M in small business aid at new White Lion Brewing in Springfield’s Tower Square

SPRINGFIELD — Gov. Charlie Baker and Lt. Gov. Karyn Polito toured the new beermaking room at White Lion Brewing in Springfield’s Tower Square Wednesday before announcing $30 million in grant and loan programs aimed at small businesses as they recover from the coronavirus pandemic.

Of the $30 million:

• Loans: $14.7 million will fund small business loans through 15 community financial institutions including Springfield nonprofit business lender CommonCapital, which received $1.25 million.
• Small Business Technical Assistance Grants: $4 million will be distributed among 45 nonprofits to continue aiding expansion of small businesses and entrepreneurs from traditionally underserved communities. Of that, $40,000 is going to CommonCapital.
• New programs: A total of $11.3 million will go to two new Massachusetts Growth Capital Corp. programs. Biz-M-Power, with $7.5 million, will offer matching grants to businesses that raise money through crowdfunding. The money…

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