Some of the most legendary pizzerias in New York City have historically relied on wood and coal-fired ovens. That tradition got a little more complex this year, as the city prepares to implement a controversial rule requiring restaurants to install emission-reducing equipment on their wood- and coal-fired ovens.

The main complaint about the new restriction was that the emission-reducing equipment is costly, with some estimating the transition costs up to $20,000. Pizzerias are not the only restaurants hampered by the law, either—it has implications for other restaurants that use wood and coal-fired ovens.

In response to the new regulation, Grubhub, the online ordering and delivery platform, is teaming up with The Greg Hill Foundation’s Restaurant Strong Fund in offering $500,000 in grant opportunities to New York City-based restaurants to “improve the environmental sustainability of their operations.”

Related: New York Pizzerias Face Costly Dilemma Over Wood- and Coal-Fired Ovens

Restaurants across New York City can apply for a grant of up to $5,000 to help offset the cost of installing emission-reducing equipment or a new type of oven altogether. Eligible restaurants are encouraged to fill out the application if they meet the following criteria:

-They must be an open restaurant that is currently operating in New York City
-They must have recently updated (no earlier than Jan. 1, 2024) or will soon update kitchen equipment that aims to improve environmental sustainability, including reducing the restaurants carbon footprint through emissions reduction
-Must provide a detailed plan of how the grant will be used and how funding will make operations more environmentally friendly

Some of the grant program’s main champions were the respective Chambers of Commerce that serve the City’s five boroughs. Lisa Sorin, President of the Bronx Chamber of Commerce, told PMQ that the emission regulations have been on her organization’s mind since they were first conceived in 2016. While the spirit of the regulations made sense, she said, there is always a sensitivity when it comes to asking small businesses to shell out money they may not have in order to comply.

“This is about small businesses around the city,” said Lisa Sorin, President of the Bronx Chamber of Commerce. “We all know that New York has the best pizza in the world, and we are proud of each and every [pizzeria]. Everybody has their favorite pizzerias—as New Yorkers, we all have a very specific one—but the focus for the Chamber is the fact that all of them are owned by families and that’s what it’s all about.”

Sorin and some of her colleagues have been working tirelessly to ensure affected restaurants across the city know that the applications are due by the end of May.

“We want to make sure that the money Grubhub is generously donating goes to the right people,” Sorin said. “We want these restaurants to know right now that you can keep the wood-fired oven. We want them to be able to keep the authenticity of the product and still be able to meet the criteria. The products are out there, they just need to make sure they’re putting the right ones into place.”

The Greg Hill Foundation was founded in March 2020 as a way to support small businesses through a time of tragedy. That made it a logical partner for Grubhub to team up.

“Grubhub has been an amazing partner to small businesses,” she continued. “It’s no surprise to me that it is Grubhub who thought to bring about this grant opportunity to help ease the financial burden that’s been put on small businesses here in New York City.”

The deadline for applications is May 31.