The City of Union City will be issuing another round of its COVID-19 Response Grant Program. The program has distributed approximately $620,000 in grant funds and forgivable loans to the community to respond to the impacts of COVID-19 and will distribute another $322,000 through this latest round of funding. The City will utilize federal Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) and CARES Act funds.

Grants are available through the City’s Road to Recovery Small Business Assistance Program and the Residential Rental Assistance Program. The City began accepting applications on March 6, 2023, at 9 a.m. and will begin reviewing applications (up to 50 applications for each grant opportunity) submitted on or before March 30, 2023, at 5 p.m. The program information and the online application are available on the City’s website:

https://www.unioncity.org/548/COVID-19-Response-Grant-Program

The City will be holding two informational/technical assistance meetings to support residents and businesses with their applications and respond to any questions. These meetings will be streamed via Zoom. See below for meeting information and Zoom meeting links.

Tuesday, March 14, 2023: 9 a.m. to 10 a.m.

https://unioncity-org.zoom.us/j/89061570160

Wednesday, March 15, 2023: 12 p.m. to 1 p.m.

https://unioncity-org.zoom.us/j/81868680531

By Mike Kinney

When he was a child, Drew DeGuzman said his parents couldn’t always afford to get his hair cut.

“So, when I got a little older into my teens, I bought a cheap pair of clippers and started cutting my own hair and found out I had a real gift for it,” said DeGuzman, an Antioch native and 2004 graduate of De La Salle High School in Concord.

DeGuzman started cutting his classmates’ hair, and also his Dad’s and brother’s. He cut hair on the weekends, and it was clear to him that this wasn’t just a hobby, but a career.

In December 2020, DeGuzman, then 36 years old, alongside Richmond native Christian Chavez, 31, opened the Empire Barber Shop at 3700 San Pablo Ave. in Hercules. The pair had previously worked since 2015 at the Empire location inside the Sunvalley Shopping Center in Concord before launching the Hercules site. The swift popularity of Empire’s new location in West County is connected to a longtime passion for craft.

“It feels really good to know that the community has embraced us, and they see the value that we bring,” DeGuzman said. “It feels great to see hard work pay off.”

Drew DeGuzman poses in front of his workstation. Photo courtesy of Empire Barbershop.

Empire partner Christian Chavez got his start at the shop where he once got his hair cut. Photo courtesy of Empire Barbershop.

Empire barbers keep up with trends and current styles for men’s grooming. Photo courtesy of Empire Barbershop.

Hard work at a young age is how Chavez found his calling. At that time, he’d get his haircuts at Adriana’s Beauty Salon in San Pablo, “right next to McDonald’s,” he said.

Chavez attended Leadership Public Schools in Richmond, which provided students a week where they could intern at a business. Adriana’s Beauty Salon hired him on as an intern to take on walk-ins. Once he got a hold of his own clippers, he started providing haircuts to his family.

“I just saw the clippers waving at me all the time,” he said. “I knew my calling was to become a professional barber and stylist.”

Empire specializes in modern men’s grooming and precision haircutting and styling. The shop additionally “stays true to our foundation in traditional barbering with an emphasis on classic hot towel shaves and service,” said DeGuzman.

The key to balancing a diversity of services with top-notch craft is ongoing education, he added.

“We have created a culture here where we want to continue to learn and seek new techniques and learn how to execute these evolving styles,” he said.

DeGuzman added, “We value professionalism and want the public to really feel welcome and respected when entering our shops.”

It’s not all work, no play for DeGuzman and Chavez.

“We are family guys,” DeGuzman said. “So we really enjoy spending time with our family and friends. “From taking advantage of the hiking trails on the waterfront, movies at the park, sporting events, and exploring all the awesome food spots our community has to offer.”

The pair also love to shop and eat locally, including at the nearby Target and Trader Joe’s, Pear Street Bistro, Leila by the Bay, Powder Keg, and “of course our neighbors at Sharetea and Kinder’s,” said DeGuzman.

Empire Barber Shop opens Monday-Friday from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m., and Saturday from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. For more information, contact (510) 243-5396.

By Keith Burbank
Bay City News

Another Bay Area bank was affected Monday by uncertainty in the financial markets following the failure of Silicon Valley Bank on Friday.

Stock in San Francisco-based First Republic Bank sank nearly 62 percent Monday and shares of other regional banks suffered losses, reportedly.

On Sunday, regulators seized Signature Bank in New York after it failed.

But a San Jose State University professor of finance and accounting does not see the failure of Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank as signs of a coming crisis.

“I don’t think it is a huge contagion issue,” said assistant professor Matthew Faulkner. “It’s more toward an isolated incident.”

Over the weekend and Monday, top federal officials including President Joseph Biden appeared to be getting ahead of the issue.

Biden sought to ease American’s fears by making all deposits held by Silicon Valley Bank customers available regardless of the amount of their deposits, federal officials said over the weekend.

That includes businesses who must pay their employees and their bills, officials said.

“Americans can have confidence that the banking system is safe,” Biden said Monday morning. “Your deposits will be there when you need them.”

Investors will not be protected, Biden said. According to the president, they took a risk and “that’s how capitalism works.”

Taxpayers will not be on the hook for the losses. Money to cover the losses will come from fees that banks pay into the deposit insurance fund, Biden said.

In California, state Treasurer Fiona Ma said Monday that her office has no exposure to Silicon Valley Bank and state and local government funds are safe.

Additionally, companies that did business with Silicon Valley Bank won’t have to pay any penalty if they must file their payroll taxes late, according to the California Employment Development Department, which collects payroll taxes.

Employers can request a waiver online at https://edd.ca.gov/en/payroll_taxes/e-Services_for_Business/ or in writing.

Silicon Valley Bank failed Friday after depositors and investors tried to withdraw $42 billion from the bank on Thursday. The bank had $175 billion in deposits at the end of last year. The withdrawals left the bank with a negative cash balance of nearly $1 billion Thursday.

Monday, First Republic Bank said it widened its financial position with liquidity from the U.S. Federal Reserve Bank and JP Morgan Chase and Co.

First Republic now has more than $70 billion to fund operations, the bank’s officials said. Additional liquidity is available through the Bank Term Funding Program, which the Federal Reserve announced Monday and ensures banks can meet the needs of their depositors.

“First Republic’s capital and liquidity positions are very strong, and its capital remains well above the regulatory threshold for well-capitalized banks,” said Jim Herbert, founder and executive chairman, and Mike Roffler, president and CEO, of First Republic Bank. “First Republic continues to fund loans, process transactions and fully serve the needs of clients.”

U.S. Senate hopeful Rep. Barbara Lee, D-Oakland, blamed the failure of Silicon Valley Bank on the rollback of federal financial regulations by former President Donald Trump.

“Federal oversight over large corporations and our economy is crucial and regulators must once again step in and ensure we do not repeat the mistakes made in 2008,” Lee said in a statement.

Silicon Valley Bank was the 16th largest bank in the United States as of March 10, Faulkner said.

Faulkner suggests depositors open another account, if they have one with more than $250,000 in it, to protect themselves.

Silicon Valley Bank was focused on serving startups, Faulkner said, which was probably part of the reason it failed. But Faulkner said the public only knows part of the story.

Copyright © 2023 Bay City News, Inc.  All rights reserved.  Republication, rebroadcast or redistribution without the express written consent of Bay City News, Inc. is prohibited. Bay City News is a 24/7 news service covering the greater Bay Area.