Governor Chris Sununu Announces: Live Venue Relief Program

Concord, NH - Today, Governor Chris Sununu and Commissioner Taylor Caswell, Executive Director of the Governor's Office for Emergency Relief and Recovery (GOFERR), announced the allocation of $12 million from the state's CARES Act Coronavirus Relief Funds for a new relief program to target New Hampshire live performance venues that have been hit especially hard by the COVID-19 pandemic. Many live shows and sports have been postponed or canceled, and, although some live performance venues have been able to provide entertainment, they are doing so with fewer shows and limited capacity to maintain social distancing in comparison to the usually large groups of people coming and sitting shoulder-to-shoulder. New Hampshire’s live performance venues are struggling to pull through with little or no revenue while still facing the heavy expenses of owning a live performance venue.

The Live Venue Relief Program supports performance venues facing economic hardship due to COVID-19, provided that they are primarily engaged in hosting live theatrical presentations, musical entertainment, or sporting or racing events that are seated, ticketed, and open to the public. The program is open to both for-profit and nonprofit facilities meeting these criteria and will provide recipients up to $1.5 million.

"Live performance venues are the lifeblood of many communities and serve as an economic engine that drives tourism to help sustain main street businesses, restaurants, and hotels," said Governor Chris Sununu. "To lose these venues would be an economic blow that would have a widespread and profoundly negative ripple effect felt across these communities for many years to come.”

Note: Qualified live performance venue owners can apply to the program starting today by visiting the GOFERR grant application portal, and clicking on “Live Venue Relief Program – Application.” The deadline to apply is next Tuesday, October 13, 2020. For more information on the Live Venue Relief Program, visit the GOFERR website by clicking here.