Community supports businesses in need

Businesses had high hopes for the new year, but the New Year’s Eve storm effectively shut those down, delaying their potential for success.

Businesses on the El Camino strip running between Belmont and San Carlos closed down, including Jazzercise, One Life Counseling Center, and Devil’s Canyon Brewery. 

This posed several financial issues and dangers for the buildings, and in One Life’s case, delayed their weekly grocery donation program partnership with Second Harvest. 

Serving about 150 families a week with groceries donated from Trader Joe’s and Costco, the program was put on hold due to an unstable fridge and freezer status. 

“The hard part is we were kind of a sense of comfort, so they’ve had to change their routine. And also, it’s kind of a small community that we’ve built. So we had to disperse our community, which just breaks our hearts,” said Cindy Schwaab, the community outreach director at One Life. 

Additionally, they had to pack everything up and put it in storage once the building flooded, which put a dent in their budget.

“That was seven, eight thousand dollars, and that that comes directly from us, which we would have loved to use to help people for low-cost therapy and for our clients,” Schwaab said. 

Jazzercise, another business in San Carlos, had to close for three weeks. Between six-inch waters and destroyed flooring and sound system, lots of time and money were needed to get the building back into shape. 

“We had folks on-site within hours of the flood because we were scheduled to have class, so I had a group of volunteers that helped us. The floor started floating away, and the underlayment became waterlogged,” said Sandy Basurto, the owner of the Jazzercise unit in San Carlos.  

After hours of work, a flood came back later that day. Basurto knew that, at that point, there was nothing she could do until the next day. 

“Water was coming through the mail slot underneath everything. We couldn’t stop water from coming in; sandbags were floating away. I mean, it was a river,” Basurto said.

On Jan. 1, the second and final cleanup started with cutting out drywall and checking for mildew. Future flooding was prevented by flex tape and cement-filled troughs in front of the door. 

Basurto was hoping January would bring in more profit as people fulfilled their fitness new year’s resolutions, but the month was more of a loss than a gain, especially since 40% of the business had been lost during the COVID-19 pandemic. When the flood turned this into an unreachable goal, Basurto set her eyes on a new date. 

“The first New Year was not very good, so my goal was Lunar New Year,” Basurto said. 

Devil’s Canyon Brewing Company, another impacted business in San Carlos, had water rushing down Old County Road into the building. With the help of volunteers and staff, they worked for hours clearing the building out but had to face a challenge once more.

“So after seven, eight hours of cleaning it all out, it came right back in. And we were just standing there like ‘we can’t do anything about it’ because it has to go somewhere,” said Mackenzie Carpenter, the marketing and strategy director at Devil’s Canyon.

After their second and last flood, they officially closed down to start construction. Still, molded drywall, debris clearing, and canceled events did not come cheap. 

“We don’t have flood insurance, so a lot of this is coming out of our pocket. But since the drain was blocked, we’re hoping we’ll be able to get some because that’s a different category on our insurance,” Carpenter said. “We’re hoping that will cover a little bit of it, but as of right now, it’s on us.”

Despite the drawbacks, one thing has been exceptionally helpful in speeding up Devil’s Canyon’s recovery: the community. Their own customers have even volunteered to do some of the cleanup work.

“We really couldn’t be luckier with our community around us,” Carpenter said.  

This generous participation by San Carlos and Belmont residents seems to be a common thread between the businesses impacted by the flood.

In One Life’s case, they received calls from community members offering to “adopt” families and provide groceries while the organization got their donation program up and running again. Between this engagement and a positive attitude, Schwaab believes in a brighter future.

“We are going to be back, and we’re going to be stronger than ever. So I’m excited about that,” Schwaab said.

Basurto and other teachers were able to live stream classes for followers of Jazzercise, which kept them going. Volunteers were also a major part of cleaning up the facility, which may have even opened new possibilities. 

“I really believe in this program. Otherwise, I wouldn’t be doing it. So I want to be really positive about this whole experience in that it’s an opportunity to rebuild. It’s an opportunity for us to be better,” Basurto said. 

Mildew, rivers, and budgeting conflicts aside, water damage is no threat to businesses with strong ties to their community.