SVOG Applicants Continue To Wait With Bated Breath As Reopening Begins

For months, sources have been telling Pollstar that this comeback will be greatly affected by small businesses, contractors and vendors’ ability to plan around receiving aid from the government, specifically the Shuttered Venue Operators Grant funds being distributed by the U.S. Small Business Administration. 

“The SVOG program was intended to provide emergency relief for an industry without recourse,” National Independent Venue Association executive director Rev. Moose told Pollstar. “The legislation creating this program was passed five months ago. That those funds are still not in the hands of venues and promoters is a huge inhibitor to being able to effectively compete in the marketplace. 

“There’s been 14 months of no income and having to front or defer costs. Now people don’t have the reserves they would normally have to make advance payments for talent, for staff, for locations, for rooms. We’re going to see the independent sector taking massive hits for no other reason than because we don’t have access to funds. That may mean independent festivals are going to be postponed another year, independent venues won’t be able to get talent and the promoters that would generally be renting space don’t have access to capital to be able to do that. Every single day that funding is not available affects the entire independent live sector.”

At press time, the SBA told Pollstar it had received 12,213 total SVOG applications but had not yet distributed any funds. Of these, 5,004 applicants were live venue operators or promoters; 2,853 were live performing arts organizations or operators; and 1,411 were talent representatives. 

Sources told Pollstar the SBA had communicated to numerous applicants that it intended to begin notifying them about their grant status during the week of May 17. Indeed, Pollstar was informed that at press time numerous applicants had noticed their grant status in the applications portal changed from “Submitted” to “Under Review” and, in some cases, from “Under Review” to “Final Review,” but it was still unclear exactly when applicants could expect funds in hand.

Michael Strickland of Bandit Lites, who has been in close contact with legislators and the SBA over the past year, told Pollstar that one challenge the SBA is dealing with is that the legislation, as written, may allow up to $10 million in grants to very wealthy business owners because their businesses sat with no revenue over the past year and the program does not factor in the net worth of the business owner. 

“Many entities sit in true dire straits, with no path to survival aside from SVOG,” Strickland told Pollstar. “Getting funds to those entities first should be job one. How you do that is the question.”

As thousands of venues across the country await news regarding their SVOG applications, many markets are gradually opening up and giving venues access to some amount of revenue once again. Minnesota Governor Tim Walz announced earlier this month that statewide restrictions on business and social gatherings will end on May 28 and mandatory mask wearing will end on July 1. Marquee venues like First Avenue and The Armory are putting shows on sale for September.

In Washington, D.C., Mayor Muriel Bowser announced capacity restrictions will be ending on June 11 and indie promoter I.M.P. is already announcing shows from August forward at its venues like 9:30 Club, The Anthem, the Lincoln Theatre and Merriweather Post Pavilion. 

In New York, many capacity restrictions were lifted on May 19, often with the condition of proof of vaccination from attendees to reach full capacity.

California is set to fully reopen on June 15 if vaccinations are adequately available to the population above the age of 16 and hospitalization rates remain stable. Governor Gavin Newsom introduced a $100 billion California Comeback Plan to help the state bounce back, but NIVA CA urged the governor to dedicate more resources to the entertainment sector.

“We applaud the inclusion and emphasis on disproportionately impacted communities and small businesses in this plan but find ourselves left out. Our venues, which are small businesses throughout California, have experienced extreme revenue loss, losing well beyond the maximum grant amount proposed on a monthly basis during the pandemic,” NIVA CA co-founder Casey Lowdermilk said in a statement. “Venues are anchor businesses in communities throughout the State and will be critical for the economic and cultural recovery of California.” s