Here are the Sacramento businesses and nonprofits that received large PPP loans
Law firms and lobbyists. Restaurants large and small. Private schools, car dealers, charities and nonprofits. Some of the Sacramento top developers, and two of the city’s professional sports teams.
More than 800 Sacramento area companies borrowed money under the federal Paycheck Protection Program, including many of the area’s most prominent firms, according to a list released Monday by the Trump administration.
The Treasury Department and Small Business Administration, which were sued by media organizations for not disclosing the identities of borrowers, made available a list of the thousands of businesses, nonprofits and others that received at least $150,000. The exact amounts of the loans weren’t released.
Borrowers include companies controlled by celebrities and those with political connections. The Washington Post reported that borrowers included a law firm that has represented President Donald Trump, a fast-food chain controlled by an Oklahoma congressman and a shipping business controlled by the family of U.S. Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao.
Also receiving a loan: PlumpJack Management Group, LLC, the winery and restaurant business started by Gov. Gavin Newsom and held in a blind trust.
The PPP program, created by Congress after the coronavirus pandemic struck, has disbursed hundreds of billions of dollars to companies hard-hit by COVID-19. The program has been extremely popular because the loans are forgivable under certain circumstances.
Among the borrowers from the Sacramento area:
▪ AKT Investments Inc., the land development company founded by Angelo K. Tsakopoulos and led for a time by his daughter, current Lt. Gov. Eleni Tsakopoulos Kounalakis. The firm borrowed between $350,000 and $1 million.
“The federal government is sending hundreds of billions all across the nation and absolutely we want to ensure that some of that comes to Sacramento,“ said AKT spokeswoman Marika Rose.
▪ Fulcrum Property Corp., the company led by developer Mark Friedman, also borrowed between $350,000 and $1 million. Ethan Conrad Properties, a major investor in commercial properties, borrowed $2 million to $5 million.
▪ Major law firms such as Weintraub Tobin and DowneyBrand ($2 million to $5 million each); and Nielsen Merksamer and Boutin Jones ($1 million to $2 million each). Lobbying organizations such as the California Medical Association ($2 million to $5 million)
“Because of the economic uncertainty associated with COVID-19, we made the decision to apply for PPP and to use those funds to avoid layoffs,” said Scott Shapiro, managing partner at DowneyBrand, in an email. “While the demand for our legal services has stayed fairly stable since March, collections did dip for a time and teleworking has changed the mix of positions that we need in the office. The PPP funds have helped us address those issues.”
▪ The Sacramento River Cats ($1 million to $2 million) and Sacramento Republic FC ($350,000 to $1 million).
▪ Pacific Ethanol Inc., a Sacramento-based producer of ethanol, $5 million to $10 million. The company had been struggling with financial problems before the pandemic struck.
▪ Health care companies such as Western Health Advantage ($2 million to $5 million).
▪ Private schools including St. Francis, Jesuit and Christian Brothers high schools ($2 million to $5 million each), the Shalom School ($350,000 to $1 million). Capital Christian Center, one of the area’s largest churches, borrowed $1 million to $2 million.
▪ Nonprofits and charities including Capital Public Radio, Girl Scouts Heart of Central California and Easter Seal Society of Superior California ($1 million to $2 million each); and Broadway Sacramento, news organization CalMatters and KVIE public television ($350,000 to $1 million).
In a blog post, nonprofit CalMatters said it received a $535,000 loan that “will significantly improve our chances of getting through this crisis without having to reduce staff.”
▪ Car dealers such as the Niello Co. ($2 million to $5 million); Von Housen Motors ($1 million to $2 million); and Mel Rapton Honda, Honda of Elk Grove and Paul Blanco’s Good Car Co. ($350,000 to $1 million each). The Blanco company was sued by the state attorney general last fall and accused of preying on vulnerable customers with false advertising, phony credit statements and other means. The company denied the allegations.
▪ Restaurants such as Echo & Rig, the upscale steakhouse in the downtown Kimpton Sawyer Hotel; Freeport Bakery, the Land Park institution; and Fixins, the Oak Park restaurant co-founded by former Mayor Kevin Johnson ($350,000 to $1 million each).
▪ Myers and Sons Construction, the firm founded by legendary highway contractor C.C. Myers. ($2 million to $5 million).
The loans to Sacramento-area businesses and nonprofits were a small sliver of the $660 billion distributed under the program. The vast majority of the loans were for less than $150,000, but details on the borrowers under that amount were not released. Many companies reported that the loans would not save a single job.
This story was originally published July 6, 2020 at 5:06 PM.