Simi Valley OKs Up to $50,000 in Funds for Quake Aid Coordinator : Recovery: Money from a federal grant will be used to assist damaged businesses and boost economic development in the city.

Hoping to help businesses still struggling to recover for the Jan. 17 earthquake, the Simi Valley City Council has earmarked up to $50,000 in relief funds to hire an earthquake assistance coordinator.

“One of the biggest problems now is we don’t know who still needs help,” Mayor Greg Stratton said. “A lot of people are grinding through the system, and some are gonna fall out the other end and not be able to get their businesses going again.”

One such person may be Razmik Ayrassian. For more than five years, Ayrassian has operated a dry-cleaning business on the city’s east end. He estimates that his business suffered more than $20,000 in damage from the January quake.

But after months of tussling with state and federal assistance agencies, Ayrassian said he has not received one penny of financial aid.

“You hear a lot of talk, talk, talk,” he said. “If the city is going to do something to help, great. I’m fed up.”

The funding is Simi Valley’s share of a $760,000 earthquake assistance grant to Ventura County from the U. S. Department of Commerce.

Fillmore and Santa Paula received the rest of the funds.

Under provisions of the funding, the Simi Valley quake coordinator will assess and document quake impact on the business community, bolster post-quake economic development and provide technical assistance, including help with applications for grants and other financial aid.

Over the next several weeks, city officials will meet with members of the Simi Valley Chamber of Commerce to figure out how to meet those goals.

“We could hire a contractor or a temporary city employee, or we could split the work among several people,” Deputy City Manager Jim Hansen said. “That’s something we’re hoping to decide with the help of the chamber.”

Hansen said the city hopes to make a decision on how to spend the funds within a month. Under provisions of the grant, the city must spend the money by September, 1995.

By helping businesses, the city hopes to encourage them to continue operating in Simi Valley, Hansen said.

“Our goal is to help as much as possible and encourage the businesses to stay in Simi Valley,” he said.

Recent estimates compiled by the city put quake damage to commercial and industrial buildings at $268 million.

Nancy Bender, executive director of the chamber, said businesses will welcome any assistance they can get.

“The idea is a good one because we still have a lot of people struggling to make repairs and replace lost inventory,” Bender said. “There are many, many businesses who still haven’t figured out how to get the loans they need to recover.”

Councilman Bill Davis agreed.

“There are businesses out there that really don’t know how to file all these claims,” Davis said. “It really is to the city’s benefit to help them out.”

FYI

For information on earthquake assistance for Simi Valley businesses, call Nancy Bender at the Simi Valley Chamber of Commerce, 526-3900.