As music lovers long for the return of concerts, there are growing concerns that some of the more intimate venues may not be able to turn the lights on at the end of the pandemic.
The National Independent Venue Association—known as NIVA—was formed to save independent venues and promoters across the country. They say without support from Congress, up to 90 percent of live music venues will be forced to close their doors.
Alan Valen is with local promoter Drusky Entertainment and he says venues like Jergel’s Rythym and Grille in Warrendale still have to pay the bills, despite not having maximum capacity.
“Jergels is a venue that has a 600 person capacity, and when Pennsylvania guidelines came out with their 50 percent capacity rule, [Jergel’s] could still operate, but they still have to pay the bills of a 600 capacity room,” Valen said.
“And those aren’t expenses that are going away,” Valen said. “It’s things like rent and mortgage, utilities, tax, insurance; these are still expenses we have to pay even though we virtually have no revenue coming in.”
Founder of the company Brian Drusky says the number of shows he’s had to cancel is starting to add up.
“We’ve either canceled or postponed, I would estimate, over 170 events,” Drusky said.
And not only would areas lose live music, but local economies will be hurt too, Valen explains.
“For every dollar spent for a concert ticket, $12 is reinvested back into the community through bars restaurants, tourism, hotels, and taxes, Valen said. “That makes for a lot for direct impact.”
SaveOurStages.com has a number of resources available for those interested in reaching out to lawmakers.
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