The city council’s executive board has announced a number of new measures to reduce the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on education, events, and retail in Eindhoven.
With schools closed, many students are now doing lessons online. In an effort coordinated by Brainport Development, 900 laptops have been delivered to local students in need. To cover the remaining shortage, a further 160 laptops will be purchased and loaned out at a cost of €32,000.
In the events industry, previously-announced relief measures will provide a cushion for entrepreneurs but do not cover organisations such as foundations or sports funds. While all events are cancelled until 1 June, organisers will face difficulties in obtaining sponsorship for any events after that date. The national support package does not specifically provide for events affected by the outbreak.
To ease the financial burden for organisers, subsidies awarded for events before 1 June will not be fully recovered if costs were incurred before the measures were implemented, and the measures led to the event’s cancellation. In addition, €50,000 in fees will not be charged, and any fees already charged will be cancelled.
Finally, as the city’s shops expect an increase in customers ahead of the Easter weekend, retailers will be allowed to stay open until 22:00 on April 10 (Good Friday). This will help facilitate the distribution of customers in supermarkets in line with existing measures.
