Legislators Announce COVID-19 Recovery & Resources Website

Site visitors can get directions to a live list of federal, state, and local resources for small businesses, unemployed workers, independent contractors and gig workers, self-employed individuals, and household breadwinners. The website also contains a growing list of nonprofits and programs that can help families pay for household expenses like groceries, rent, utilities, and health insurance.

The website’s “Open for Business” page includes a list of Monmouth County restaurants that are currently offering takeout, delivery, or other food delivery options such as DoorDash, GrubHub, and UberEats. Qualifying local restaurant owners can submit their own business’s information to be added to the list via an online form. To qualify, a restaurant must be located in New Jersey’s 11th Legislative District.

Towns in the 11th Legislative District include Allenhurst, Asbury Park, Colts Neck, Deal, Eatontown, Freehold Borough, Freehold Township, Interlaken, Loch Arbour Village, Long Branch, Neptune City, Neptune Township, Ocean Township, Red Bank, Shrewsbury Borough, Shrewsbury Township, Tinton Falls and West Long Branch.

Residents of the 11th Legislative District can also get help with state programs and services, as well as answers to coronavirus-related questions, through the site’s Contact page. Finally, visitors to LD11Recovery.com can learn more about legislation that has been passed or signed into law to address the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as view a list of community leaders who will work with Gopal, Houghtaling, and Downey on COVID-19 policy and community engagement as members of a new District 11 Economic Recovery Advisory Panel.

“We know that many small businesses are struggling to make ends meet right now, let alone keep their doors open,” said Gopal (D-Long Branch), a small business owner based in Tinton Falls. “We want LD11Recovery.com to be your one-stop shop for every state, federal, and local support program available in our area. If you’re a local restaurant owner and your kitchen is still open, we want to feature you and to encourage our neighbors to support your efforts as you work to keep your customers fed. If you’re self-employed or an independent contractor, we want to connect you directly to programs that can help, and help walk you through an array of services and applications that can often be difficult to navigate.”

“Ultimately, we want to be as helpful as we can to all of our residents, and we’re hoping that this new site will be another way to do that,” said Houghtaling (D-Neptune). “I know that a lot of workers are facing difficulties with unemployment benefits right now, and we’ve tried to assemble a number of guides, tips, and reference materials that can help you make sure that you get the funds you need to support your family. If you’re ever having issues with a state program or service, or if you have any questions about the COVID-19 pandemic or New Jersey’s response to it, there are forms on this website as well where you can make your voice heard and get assistance directly from our office.”

“It can be hard to afford basic groceries when you’re unemployed, let alone big expenses like utilities, health insurance premiums, or even rent,” said Downey (D-Freehold). “We’ve put together a list of nonprofits and state programs that can help you access the support you need to put food on the table for your loved ones while maintaining your home and keeping your finances stable. LD11Recovery.com will also contain a comprehensive listing of all coronavirus-related legislation that we’re working on and that our state has already enacted into law – because while we always want to make sure you know what your legislators are doing to try to help you, that’s doubly true during this pandemic.”