Gabriela Mendoza sells smoothies, ice cream and snacks made from a rainbow of fresh fruit at Frutas Locas, her Vancouver shop. But business has dropped 70% in the past year, she said, and many other restaurants on Fourth Plain are also struggling to pay rent and bills.

The Fourth Plain corridor spans a collection of neighborhoods in central Vancouver, Washington. It’s known for its high number of immigrant and BIPOC-owned businesses ranging from restaurants to mechanic shops.

It’s also an area that has seen a chill in activity because of the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown.

People are not coming inside because they are scared, Mendoza said. “The family is inside in the house. My business is very, very slow.”

On Monday night, the Vancouver City Council approved a plan to provide financial support to businesses like Frutas Locas. The city allocated $300,000 in grant funds to support small businesses around Fourth Plain Boulevard that are experiencing significant financial losses in the city’s so-called “international district.”

Vancouver’s grant program targets businesses that have experienced losses of at least 40% of their revenue in the past year.

“We’ve definitely seen an influx in businesses reporting up to 60% of sales reductions. Between 40% and 60% of sales reductions compared to the previous year,” said Nicole Davison Leon, executive director of the Hispanic Metropolitan Chamber, which serves approximately 700 businesses in Portland and Southwest Washington.

The Trump administration’s federal immigration policies are affecting staffing and resulting in fewer customers, on top of increased tariff costs for Fourth Plain businesses, Davison Leon said.

City grants of up to $10,000 per business can be used to pay for immediate needs like payroll, rent and utilities. Awards can’t exceed the amount of a business’s documented revenue loss. Grants must be given within six months of the inception of the program.

“We hope to do this pretty quick, because I think the needs are now, not two months from now,” said Chris Harder, deputy director of economic prosperity and housing at the city of Vancouver.

Funding used in the program came to Vancouver through the American Rescue Plan Act, the federal program passed in response to the pandemic, which over time was converted to city general fund dollars, Harder said. Those dollars were specifically allocated to the Fourth Plain investment area, rather than for citywide programs.

A to-be-determined nonprofit will run the program for the city. During a Monday night council meeting, city officials said that outreach would be better done by a nongovernmental organization.

Vancouver residents have been attending community meetings and public hearings to call on city officials to respond to local immigration actions by the Trump administration in recent months.

So far, the city’s responses have been limited. They include statements from Vancouver Police Chief Troy Price, who has reiterated that his department does not cooperate with federal officers. The city has compiled “know your rights” and legal assistance resources on its website. And both the city and Clark County have written resolutions expressing alarm about federal immigration officers’ tactics.

The city’s grant program will offer a more concrete, if indirect, response for businesses that have been pulled into the climate of fear in the local immigrant community.

“A lot of these small businesses, they’re our neighbors, they’re our family, they’re people that we know,” Davison Leon said.

At Frutas Locas, a $10,000 grant would help Mendoza stay in business, which she says she can’t close because it’s how she supports her family.

“It’s a solution for every business in the area,” she said.

News Source : https://www.opb.org/article/2026/02/24/vancouver-fourth-plain-business-grant/