Repaying Small Business Administration loan is a struggle, St. Bernard Parish businesswoman tells senators
Mindy Nunez Airhart, marketing director for Southern Services & Equipment Inc. in St. Bernard Parish, credits federal contracts with helping keep the company afloat after Hurricane Katrina. But testifying before Sen. Mary Landrieu's Small Business Committee last week, Nunez Airhart had some recommendations to help small businesses recover faster from a major disaster.
Mindy Nunez AirhartAfter Katrina destroyed Southern Services' building and its equipment, Nunez Airhart said the company was able to get sole-source emergency construction contracts from the Army Corps of Engineers. "As corps personnel learned that our company performed tasks on time and on budget, we earned their trust and began to get a larger share of the hurricane recovery contracts," she said.
But with the federal emergency contracts the "only work available," her firm quickly exceeded the maximum percentage of federal contract work to qualify for the sole source contracts. She also said the company is struggling to repay its Small Business Administration loan.
"In our case, we used our SBA business loan to buy new machinery and equipment, office furniture and computers to replace those ruined by floodwaters," Nunez Airhart said. "However, this loan must be repaid, and to have to make a loan to repurchase everything you already paid for is financially devastating." Landrieu, D-La., promised to look at ways to help small businesses recover faster after a major disaster.
Bruce Alpert can be reached at balpert@timespicayune.com or 202.450.1406. Jonathan Tilove can be reached at jtilove@timespicayune.com or 202.450.1404.