Owner Jesus Bonillas measures the distance between tables at the American Eat Co. Small businesses can apply for no-interest loans through the city until Tuesday, May 26.

 Josh Galemore / Arizona Daily Star

Small businesses in Tucson can still get direct no-interest loans through a city of Tucson program, but time is running out as the application deadline is looming on Tuesday, May 26.

The Tucson City Council in April approved $1 million in funding to the We Are One/Somos Uno Resiliency Fund to fund the loans through the Business Development Finance Corp.

More than $300,000 of the $1 million authorized by the mayor and City Council for loans has been awarded, the city says.

Direct loans of up to $25,000 at zero interest are available to small businesses, sole proprietors, 1099 contractor workers and 501(c)(3) nonprofits that meet the eligibility criteria.

The remainder of the funds will be allocated for direct loans to businesses that are minority-, women-, veteran-, or disability-owned or are located in low-to-moderate income areas.

“We want to make sure our historically underserved businesses are benefiting from the financial assistance programs that are so urgently needed right now,” Mayor Regina Romero said.

To be eligible for the Tucson Resiliency Loan Funds, a business must be located within Tucson city limits and have a valid Tucson business license or be registered with the Arizona Corporation Commission in good standing.

Barbra Coffee, Director of Economic Initiatives for the City of Tucson, said eligible businesses must be locally owned and operated and not part of a national chain.

The deadline to apply is midnight Tuesday, and there are no current plans to extend the program, Coffee said.

For more information or to apply for a loan, go to bdfc.com/tucson or contact the Tucson Small Business Hotline at 837-4100.

Separately, city-funded grants of $3,000 to $20,000 also are available through the Community Foundation of Southern Arizona at tucne.ws/cfsac19.

"We're tough as saguaros," editorial cartoonist David Fitzsimmons says. He says he saw a video made for the people of Detroit and became inspired to do his own take for Tucson.

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Contact senior reporter David Wichner at dwichner@tucson.com or 573-4181. On Twitter: @dwichner. On Facebook: Facebook.com/DailyStarBiz.