Dear Chamber Member,
First and foremost, I pray that you and your family are staying safe and healthy through this unprecedented COVID crisis. Never in our lifetimes have we seen an event that has had such a devastating effect on our entire society and economy. I want you to know that as we all move through these difficult days together, the Chamber and our team will be here as your ally and a trusted source of relevant information pertaining to the Montauk business community. While the office itself will not be accepting in-person visits (for obvious reasons), Laraine, Karin and Pat will be available by phone and email to assist you and your business in any way that they can. I am also available to you at any time to answer your calls or emails. For ease of reference here is the contact info for all of us:
Karin and Pat, Main Office number 631-668-2428; or 631-668-2429 Email- info@montaukchamber.com;karinmcoc@optonline.net
Laraine, Office Number Cell 917-748-5998; 631-668-2355 Email- laraine@montaukchamber.com
Paul, Cell 631-875-2854; Email- paul.monte@montaukchamber.com
We plan to follow things closely as they unfold and will be sharing information as we receive it. Although there may be days when you’ll receive many Chamber emails in your inbox please forgive us but we want you to have as much information as you can get to help you navigate through these next few months. There are many Government Assistance Programs currently approved and many more being proposed. They will almost all be helpful in some way for you, your business and your workers so please utilize them if you can. Here are a few links that can help you start the process of getting informed.
Congressman Zeldin website
Governor Cuomo Corona website
https://coronavirus.health.ny.gov/home
NYS Unemployment website
https://labor.ny.gov/unemploymentassistance.shtm
NYS Sales Tax re. Possible extension of deadline to pay 1st quarter sales tax due on March 20, 2020. See article in NY.Eater link
https://www.tax.ny.gov/bus/st/stidx.htm
https://ny.eater.com/2020/3/19/21186637/sales-tax-restaurants-coronavirus-nyc
Suffolk County Business Recovery Unit
https://suffolkcountyny.gov/Departments/Economic-Development-and-Planning/Business-Recovery-Unit
Another very important issue to address is the fact that all of our restaurants and bars have been shut down for dine in service. This is a major blow to these establishments and we want to do everything we can to support them so they can survive this devastating situation. If you are offering food to go please call the Chamber and let us know so that we can let the world know that you are there offering your services for them. We will be getting that list up on our website soon and Edible Long Island is also compiling a list for publication on their website. If you’d like to be included there please email meghan@edibleeastend.com
We will be following this email with several other emails from various organizations that contain information that we feel will be valuable to you at this time. Please keep an eye out for them.
This crisis is daunting and scary and contains many unknowns that will challenge our Montauk community. However, as we navigate these rough, uncharted waters ahead there is one thing we can say for certain…Montauk is a strong and immovable community that has faced difficult days before and emerged stronger and better in the end. I am sure, that once again, we will work together and support each other as family to achieve the same positive result this time.
Please stay safe and stay healthy. God bless!
Paul
Paul Monte
President
Montauk Chamber of Commerce
Best,
Laraine Creegan
Executive Director, Montauk Chamber of Commerce
631-668-2355/917-748-5998 cell