Music venues will need financial help until vaccine here

Local promoter says Tuesday’s $20M package isn’t enough

WATERLOO REGION — The financial aid package Ottawa announced for independent livemusic venues is not enough to ensure places like Maxwell’s Concerts & Events will survive the COVID-19 pandemic, says Paul Maxwell.

The owner of the 700-person capacity venue was reacting to the $20 million in emergency financial help the federal department of heritage announced Tuesday evening. This round of emergency funding will cover for-profit venues, festivals, promoters, booking agents and managers as well as some non-profit organizations.

“There is going to be thousands of people applying,” said Maxwell. “It’s not a lot of money to go around, it is disappointing.”

The $20-million fund is part of a much larger $500-million emergency relief program for arts, culture, heritage and sports announced earlier in the pandemic. There are about 400 independent, live music venues in Canada. If each one received $50,000, the $20-million fund would quickly be gone.

The privately-owned venues that hold 500 to 1,000 fans typically pay $15,000 to $30,000 a month in rent, said Maxwell.

But the program will only help with up to $10,000 in rent.

In this region, two venues fall into this category, the Starlight Lounge and Maxwell’s Concerts & Events.

“It’s not nearly enough money when you add up all the people who are going to be applying for it,” said Maxwell.

Maxwell has sent letters to federal and provincial members of Parliament outlining the economic pressure his industry faces, and why a partial reopening will never work.

Maxwell’s, and other live music venues like it, will not be able to operate at a reduced capacity and earn a profit, he said.

So they will need financial help until there is a vaccine, or the overwhelming majority will be forced to close, said Maxwell.

The costs of enhanced cleaning, cashless sales and capping audience sizes at 50 per cent of the capacity will create a money-losing scenario. Smaller audiences with everyone wearing a mask will result in much lower alcohol and concession sales, which are essential to making a profit.

“It will just be a fraction of the sales we were receiving before,” said Maxwell.

Breaking up a popular show into two or three different shows for smaller audiences only increases costs.

Fans who bought tickets months ago are getting disgruntled because nobody can say when their show will happen. If they start demanding refunds, it could add more financial stress because deposits have already been paid out, said Maxwell.

“So the $20 million, do I think it will help? No,” said Maxwell.

The emergency funds will be given to Musicaction and FACTOR for distribution to successful applicants.

“We are all in the same storm, we just have different sized boats,” said Maxwell of the different ways the pandemic impacts the economy. “We are all weathering something, we are all struggling with the loss of a lot of things.”