It took only minutes for stores in Baltimore to be destroyed on the night of April 27. But six weeks later, the repair process is still limping along. And stores not directly affected by the violence say they've also seen a sharp decline in business.
"Look outside, there's nobody," says Pedro Silva, owner of Carolina's Tex-Mex Restaurant in Fells Point, a usually busy tourist spot. "Before we used to be no parking space. Now it's empty. It's empty, day, night."
Silva says since the riots, business has been cut in half. And at lunchtime last week, the place was almost empty, as Silva sat with a lending officer from the non-profit Latino Economic Development Center, to get a $5,000 loan to cover some bills.
Nearly 400 businesses throughout Baltimore were damaged during riots after the death of Freddie Gray. The city, state and federal governments have offered millions of dollars in aid. But very little has gone out so far, despite broad agreement that getting these businesses back on their feet is crucial for the city's recovery.
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13 comments:
I don't plan to spend a dime in Baltimore unless it is an absolute emergency. It is bad enough that they get most of state taxes every year.
Make the mayor pay for it - she gave the thugs 'permission' to loot!
I am sorry for ALL the businesses that were affected by the riots in Baltimore. However the ignorant riotors destroyed their own neighborhood. I hope that NONE of the business rebuild or return. I would take the insurance money and move. The people of Baltimore should realize that their are consequences for their bad behavior.
Yeah not too much call for visiting "charm City", dangerous place, only the thugs can carry protection and the police are laying low in fear of their own higher ups.
My tax money might go there but, not me.
Why should taxpayers pay for looting, especially in a city with an incompetent mayor who didn't act appropriately during the offset of those riots.
Aid is slow to get to the street level because you have all the beuracratic levels of govt that has to pass through in a '1 for them, 2 for me' process so that by the time that 1 million hits the street level there is only $372,876.23 left for actuall aid to the businesses! It takes a while to process that kind of paper work! ( Lol )
This is their punishment.They're just too stupid to know it.The powers that be have passed judgement.The trick here will be to see if those who destroyed Baltimore can muster up enough subservience to rebuild it.The rest of us should applaud the way it's being handled.
I would not be in any hurry to visit "Charm" city. Parking, the Metro, walking, all nightmarish to my way of thinking.
Thems people destroyed it let thems people rebuild it.
Have the funds come out of the Mayor's and City Attorney General's paycheck.
Media has made Baltimore sound like a war zone and no one wants to come into the city.
It is over and people would be hard pressed to even find these businesses that were damaged, most of Baltimore is business as usual.
This slow down is collateral damage caused by the media extremes.
Dont these business have insurance? Seriously, why do they get low or zero interest loans?
Make the idiots who rioted; probably on welfare, unemployment, food stamps, Obama phones be forced to lose these entitlements to pay for the destruction.
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