Sunnyside Shines is gratified to announce eligibility guidelines and registration links for individuals wishing to express an interest in the Sunnyside Fire Relief Fund. The Fund was established with the charitable intent to provide emergency, short-term disaster relief to individual employees displaced by the December 13, 2018 Sunnyside fire, with a primary focus on aiding employees of the businesses destroyed in the fire event as intended by donors to the Relief Fund; the Fund is part of Sunnyside Shines' newly create Business Community Relief Program, which provides relief in the event of qualifying disasters that affect the business community within the Sunnyside Shines BID.
Beyond the Sunnyside Shines Fire Relief Funds, additional in-kind services may be available to those affected by the fire, including but not limited to: emergency response support through the New York City Department of Small Business Services, job banks or fairs coordinated with the assistance of Sunnyside Shines, or individual referral to potential assistance services coordinated through Sunnyside Shines.
Eligibility:
Sunnyside Shines has identified three groups who may register their potential interest in the Fire Relief Fund and/or the supporting, in-kind services offered by Sunnyside Shines. These include:
Group 1: Registrants who can demonstrate that they were employees of the businesses located at the following addresses as of 12.12.2018 (potentially eligible for both relief fund and in-kind services):
Better Line Hardware, 45-11 45th Street, Sunnyside, NY 11104
Romantic Depot, 45-02 Queens Blvd., Sunnyside, NY 11104
New York Style Eats, 45-02 Queens Blvd., Sunnyside, NY 11104
Zen Yai, 45-04 Queens Blvd., Sunnyside, NY 11104
UPS Store, 45-06 Queens Blvd., Sunnyside, NY 11104
Sidetracks, 45-08 Queens Blvd., Sunnyside, NY 11104
Group 2: includes registrants who can demonstrate that they were employees of the businesses located adjacent to the fire site on the block of Queens Boulevard Eastbound between 45th and 46th Streets (addresses specified below), and who can provide confirmation that they lost income specifically because of lost work time due to temporary business closure resulting from the 12.13.18 Sunnyside fire. Registrants deemed eligible as members of Group 2 may receive a one-time benefit, in the form of check payment, of $100 to compensate for lost wages. Employees of businesses located at the following addresses may be eligible members of this group:
45-14 Queens Blvd., Sunnyside, NY 11104
45-16 Queens Blvd., Sunnyside, NY 11104
45-18 Queens Blvd., Sunnyside, NY 11104
45-20 Queens Blvd., Sunnyside, NY 11104
Group 3: Group 3 includes business entities located at the preceding addresses associated with Groups 1 and 2; registrants are eligible for in-kind services only, including and primarily emergency response support and referrals coordinated through the New York City Department of Small Businesses Emergency Response team. Sunnyside Shines, to the best of its capability and capacity, may offer additional in-kind services such as referrals to services.
Disbursement of Fire Relief Fund Monies (Groups 1 and 2 only)
Group 1
Registered and confirmed eligible members of Group 1 (Employees of businesses destroyed by the fire) will receive an initial disbursement of emergency relief funds before 12/31/18, and secondary disbursements after 1/1/19, provided that they:
1) Have been deemed eligible by the Sunnyside Shines Executive Committee.
2) Have registered their interest in the fund by 12/30/2018 (to receive monies via check in 2018) or by 1/15/2019 (to receive monies via check in 2019.) Individuals who register their interest after 12/30/2018 permanently forfeit any potential distribution of money compensation planned for calendar year 2018.
Eligible members of Group 1 only, as determined by the Sunnyside Shines Executive Committee, may be eligible for in-kind benefits addressing short-term, emergency, essential needs including but not limited to grocery or cell phone vouchers or other forms of short-term, emergency assistance.
Group 2
Registered and confirmed eligible members of Group 2 (Employees of adjacent businesses as defined in eligibility guidelines) shall receive a one-time money award of $100 after 1/1/19, provided that they:
1) Have been deemed eligible by the Sunnyside Shines Executive Committee.
2) Have registered their interest in the fund by 1/15/2019.
Registered and eligible members of Group 2 are not eligible for in-kind relief aid.
Dissolution of Fund
Consistent with its intended purpose as a source of short-term, emergency relief, Sunnyside Shines Fire Relief Fund is to be expended in its entirety by March 31, 2019, in a manner that is directly for the benefit of the specified groups only and consistent with donor intent. Any potential member of the beneficiary groups who has failed to register their interest in the fund by that date permanently forfeits their potential interest in the fund. In the case that the fund monies are exhausted in their entirety before January 16, 2019, any late registrants for the Fund will only receive benefits if additional contributions to the Fund are received. The checking account for the Sunnyside Shines Fire Relief Fund is to be permanently closed on or shortly after March 31, 2019, by majority order of the Sunnyside Shines Executive Committee, upon deeming that short-term emergency relief has been satisfactorily provided to confirmed-eligible members of the beneficiary groups.
In the case that a Relief Fund beneficiary chooses to donate their money benefit back into the Fire Relief Fund, and with the express permission of that donor, the monies shall be issued as a gift to the NYC Fire Department Foundation upon dissolution of the Fire Relief Fund.
Additional notice to business entitites:
As communicated to the public, the Sunnyside Shines Fire Relief Fund is intended to provide emergency, short-term support to individuals who lost work as a result of the 12/13/18 Sunnyside fire. Business entities are not eligible for relief monies, but business owners who were on the payroll of their business may register their interest in the Fund. Any potential disbursements to individual business owners will be equal to the disbursement made to other confirmed-eligible individuals in their qualifying Group. Any short-term or long-term closure by adjacent businesses as a result of the fire will not constitute eligibility for relief funding payable to business entitities. Businesses in the Sunnyside Shines Business Improvement District are advised to maintain Business Interruption Insurance at all times in order to provide protection from such closures.
To register your interest in the Sunnyside Fire Relief Fund, please visit the following link:
No address provided for this vacancy.
