Business Loans & Support

FEDERAL

As of today, March 19, Congress has passed two pieces of legislation to respond to the COVID-19 outbreak. Click this link to see a memo that describes how these two laws impact business owners.

Congress is currently working on a third bill that is meant to be a significant economic stimulus package. AIA National is actively advocating on your behalf for investments within that bill. 

STATE

The Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development (DCED) offers working capital loans that could be of assistance to businesses impacted by COVID-19. Resources and information will be posted to http://dced.pa.gov/resources as they become available.

The U.S. Small Business Administration, in addition to local funding partners, may also be a source of assistance for affected businesses. The Wolf Administration has announced the availability of low-interest loans for small businesses and eligible non-profits in all 67 counties in Pennsylvania through the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA).

Businesses seeking guidance from DCED can also contact its customer service resource account at

ra-dcedcs@pa.gov or by calling 1-877-PA-HEALTH and selecting option 1.

Public Work

The Pennsylvania Department of General Services (DGS) COVID-19 Guidance & Resources

Design, Construction and Job Order Contract Information

The Pennsylvania Department of General Services (DGS) is implementing the following operational changes in response to Governor Tom Wolf's mitigation guidance regarding COVID-19.

Effective immediately, all design contracts, design work orders, design amendments, design/build contracts, construction contracts, change order work and JOC purchase orders are suspended STATEWIDE effective close of business on Tuesday, March 17 until further notice. Contractors may access the project site tomorrow (March 17, 2020) to remove tools and equipment and to stabilize the site. Agencies may not authorize or direct any contractor to continue to work. DGS will discuss extending design submission deadlines and construction contract completion dates at a future date. No new projects will be released to bid for two weeks. Contracts in the signature cycle will be held for two weeks.JOC contractors are available to perform emergency work as needed.

All questions should be directed to either the Design Project Manager, Design Portfolio Manager, Construction Assistant Project Coordinator or Construction Project Coordinator for your project.

COVID-19 Resource Round Up

As the world faces an unprecedented “new normal”, many organizations including architecture firms have taken steps in response to the COVID-19 outbreak to protect the health of their employees, clients, and the community. We understand that architecture firms are no different. 

While every firm will have a unique set of circumstances, we are sharing some general guidelines and resources that could offer insight into navigating the impacts of COVID-19 on architecture firm leaders, employees, operations, and business.

Addressing Your Firm’s Questions & Highlighting Your Firm’s Response to COVID-19

We see this as an opportunity to come together and learn from one another. AIA Pennsylvania staff is in the process of coordinating the development of a series of educational webinars/virtual roundtables for the benefit of all members.

We're seeking advice from those firms, small to large, whose operations (telework infrastructure and policy, continuity plans) are more equipped to handle an unforeseeable scenario like the one we are currently facing.

If you would like to share how your firm is responding via virtual webinar format, please complete the quick form linked in the button below by Monday, March 23.

We also want to hear from you with any questions/concerns that you would like addressed from an operations (HR, contracts/legal/liability, technology) perspective. If you have questions to pose to our network of partners and/or your peers, please complete the quick form linked in the button below by Monday, March 23.