Frequently Asked Questions

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The City of Mount Rainier Small Business Assistance Grant Program is designed to assist small businesses that experienced a revenue loss due to the negative economic impacts of the COVID-19 public health emergency.

The City has allocated $50,000 for the program.

Any small business that is physically located within the boundaries of the City, and who meets the eligibility requirements of the program may apply.

Applicants must:

• Clearly demonstrate a revenue loss due to the negative economic impact of COVID-19 on their business.
• Have annual revenues of less than $5 million.
• Have been established prior to March 9, 2020.
• Be in "Good Standing" or "Active" with the State of Maryland through the Department of Assessments and Taxation, and "Good Standing" with the City of Mount Rainier.
• Have between 1 and 25 employees.
• Be in operation as of the date of the application.
• Must not have received prior funding for the revenue loss contained in the application from the Federal Government, State of Maryland, or Prince George's County.

Applicants may apply for up to $5,000 in financial assistance. Each applicant must fully justify their funding request by providing sufficient documentation that provides clear evidence or proof of the negative economic impact.

Eligible items include only declines in revenues due to COVID-19. Applicants must provide supporting documentation that clearly shows their revenue loss due to COVID-19.

Please review the Small Business Assistance Grant Program guidelines, including eligibility requirements. When you are ready to proceed, please submit a completed Application Form to:

Attention: Small Business Assistance Grant Program
City Manager's Office City of Mount Rainier 1 Municipal Place
Mount Rainier, Maryland 20712 

Or, you may also email the completed application and requirements to the City Manager.

Applications will be accepted up to March 18, 2022, at 4 pm, however, applications will be accepted and reviewed as they are submitted (e.g., on a first-come, first-served basis). The City encourages applicants to submit the applications as soon as possible.

If you have questions, please contact the Program Administrator at 301-985-6585.

Applications may not be updated after submission. Please ensure that your application is correct and complete before submitting it.

The City will administer the program under the guidance and direction of the City Manager.

Applications will be accepted and reviewed on a first-come, first-served basis. Submission of an incomplete or inaccurate application may result in a denial of funds. The City expects to complete a review of an application within ten business days of receipt.

The determination as to whether the application provides sufficient proof that the business experienced a negative economic impact due to COVID-19 or responds to the negative economic of COVID-19 shall be determined by the City in its sole judgment and is not appealable.

Applicants will be notified, in writing, of the City's decision regarding the application and funding amount (if applicable).

Fill out the Small Business Assistance Grant Program Application (PDF) and submit it to the City Manager before the March 18, 2022, 4 pm deadline.

Small Business Assistance Grant Program (PDF)

Put simply, it is legislation the City of Mount Rainier passed to encourage residents to landscape with native plants, helping to support the native wildlife that once thrived here. In doing so, we hope to build a "network" of native habitats across our city. The legislation was introduced by Councilmember Luke Chesek in 2020.

If you've committed at least 10 percent of your landscape to native plants or planted 25 native plants (wildflowers, bushes, or trees) in your yard, you are eligible to get certified by the Green Team as an official member of the Network.

You can sign up to have a native plant specialist tour your yard for about 30 minutes to determine whether you meet one of the two thresholds. We are offering several times on several different dates in October. If you're not quite ready to certify but want to stay informed of future Native Plant Network activities, please sign up here as well!

On the form, there is also a space for you to tell us which native plants you have planted on your property. (iNaturalist is a great application that can help you identify which native plants you have in your yard if you're not sure). This will help speed up the certification process.

Residents who are certified will receive a small sign, designed by Mount Rainier's very own Torie Partridge, to demonstrate their commitment to planting native.

Residents will also have the option of designating their home as a part of the Mount Rainier Native Plant Network on a Google map to create a virtual representation of how this network connects native habitats across our city. This Google map allows residents to comment on which native species grow well or which species have found a habitat in their yard and be accessible to the public.

That conversation starts with a word – biodiversity. Biodiversity is crucial to our planet. It is the plants, bugs, bees, birds, bears, humans, and everything in between that makes our planet so wonderfully alive and habitable to us. Unfortunately, whether it’s climate change or habitat destruction, our planet’s biodiversity is declining at alarming rates. By planting native, you help join a growing movement of people all over the world who are now landscaping with native plants. You can learn more by watching Mount Rainier’s Native Plant Network Kickoff.

Yes! The best news is that Mount Rainier is starting to become a catalyst for similar efforts across our state. The Sierra Club's Maryland Chapter is working to push this idea to our neighboring jurisdictions in an effort to create a Native Plant and Wildlife Corridor across the entire state of Maryland. Our neighbors in Brentwood have started their own Native Plant Network as well!