TAMPA, Fla. — If the COVID-19 relief package does not pass, struggling venues will have to continue to wait for some help.
Grants are available for cultural institutions and venues this time around. There is $15 billion in this bill that could go a long way.
The bill includes the "Save our Stages Act" which would provide relief to independent music venues, movie theaters and other cultural institutions that have been shut down because of the pandemic.
That includes the Tampa Theatre, which has been closed since March 12.
Since it opened in 1926, it has never been closed this long.
It's been a community gathering place for almost a century and it's been unable to do what it was built for -- to welcome crowds.
Jill Witecki, Marketing Director for the Tampa Theatre, says its hemorrhaging almost $100,000 a month just in upkeep and keeping the staff employed so it can reopen the minute it is safe to do so.
The theater is thrilled to see the Save our Stages Act in this bill and is hoping it gets signed.
"It could very well mean the difference between being able to reopen next month, which is our goal, hopefully we'll be able to announce that date very quickly, and making sure the team that runs Tampa Theatre still has jobs when that happens," says Witecki.
If this bill gets signed there's still a lot to figure out: how much money is available, who qualifies and how the SBA will roll it out.
For now, CARES Act money is helping. Tampa Theatre is using half of it to upgrade its air handler and get an ionization system to help clean the air. That will allow it to reopen safely.
The theater hopes to announce a reopen date in the next week.
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