COOLIDGE — Pinal County employers took home almost $87 million out of the $8.6 billion in Paycheck Protection Program loans given out in Arizona overall, according to data released by the U.S. Small Business Administration last month.

The loans went out to over 2,000 businesses and organizations across the county.

Fourteen companies received over $1 million, with the largest amount, over $5.7 million, going to Western Industrial Resources Corporation in Apache Junction. The businesses employed over 13,000 workers, although not all numbers were reported. The average loan was worth around $64,000.

In addition to Western Industrial, the top five largest loan recipients were: Sun Life Family Health Center, based in Casa Grande; T&K Feeds in Stanfield; Felix Construction Company in Coolidge; and Horizon Heath and Wellness Inc., based in Apache Junction. In addition to construction companies, several large dairies in Maricopa, Milky Way Dairy and Windmill Dairy, received large loan payments.

The loans were part of a national initiative to help small businesses get through the pandemic and state lockdowns, which in Arizona lasted from March 15 to May 15. Companies that used 60% or more of the money to keep their employees on payroll during the pandemic period were eligible for at least partial loan forgiveness.

According to Community Relations Manager Sam Reinhard, the PPP loan was essential for Sun Life to help pay its health care employees during the pandemic. The health center, which employs over 400 and serves 45,000 patients, was able to stay open even during an initial 40% drop in in-person appointments.

“Because of the PPP loan, we were able to serve our patients who needed us the most,” Reinhard said. “There was a growing conversation about staying home, but that meant patients would go without management of their chronic conditions.”

Some businesses were hesitant to discuss how they appropriated the PPP money they received. Coolidge Chamber of Commerce President Lynn Parsons said she’d heard from restaurants in the area that were concerned about their business staying open. One of the area’s longtime staples, Gallopin’ Goose, applied for PPP money but still hasn’t been able to reopen.

Jim Garrett, owner of Garrett Motors, which applied for $500,000 in PPP, said that the major challenges for his business included allowing for sick or quarantining employees as well as installing new pandemic-related equipment and protection.

“Our business has been doing great,” Garrett said, “but it has been very difficult if somebody gets exposed. We don’t have many cases but if anybody has a cold or anything at all, they have to get tested and there’s a lot of absenteeism because you are trying to be safe and keep track of everything.”

Coolidge City Manager Rick Miller said that the city of Coolidge itself had to apply for money through the CARES Act to help cover the cost of public safety employees.

The county’s economic development manager, Tim Kanavel, said that overall, many local businesses were able to make it through the pandemic.

Although the county was not directly responsible for disseminating PPP money, Kanavel said that the county gave out $1.4 million to small businesses in unincorporated areas through the Pinal County Businesses Sustainability Program.

“We’ve had very few companies or any small businesses go under,” Kanavel said. “Some have struggled and some have closed, but that is the natural order and businesses come and go. They will be there for two years but they never plan to fail. Some might make a great product but they don’t know how to be good business people.”