Property owners affected by the McKinley Fire have a new option for financial relief, but also a new requirement to receive aid they may have already applied for.
Last week, the Small Business Administration declared the McKinley Fire a disaster. That opens up low-interest loans to businesses and residential property owners affected by the fire. Homeowners without credit who qualify could take out loans with less than two-percent interest.
The opening of the new funding source also means some extra paperwork for property owners who have already applied for assistance through the state. According to Mat-Su Borough Emergency Manager Casey Cook, state regulations require that those seeking funds through the individual disaster assistance program also apply for any other potential source of disaster relief. That includes the SBA loan program.
Currently, there are dozens of people impacted by the McKinley Fire but have not yet applied for an SBA loan. At Monday night’s Talkeetna Community Council meting, Mat-Su Borough Assembly Member Tam Boeve told the audience that more than sixty state individual assistance applications have been filed, but only three applications for the federal loan program. Borough officials and non-profits focused on helping those impacted by the fire are working to try to close that gap.
