Chamber offers relief to restaurants

It could be money to pay an employee, a utility bill, or perhaps the rent.

For whatever purpose, the Greater Lehigh Valley Chamber of Commerce said Tuesday it will make $150,000 available to 100 restaurant owners in Lehigh, Northampton and Warren counties.

Owners must apply between 9 a.m. and 10 a.m. Thursday, said Jessica O’Donnell, a chamber executive vice president. For more information, go to lehighvalleychamber.org/restaurantrelieffund.

That amounts to $1,500 each, admittedly a small amount to restaurant owners, many of who have been struggling since the March outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic, O’Donnell said. It became tougher when Gov. Tom Wolf this month ordered restaurants and most indoor facilities closed until Jan. 4.

“But now with winter and beyond, the future is unknown for them,” O’Donnell said.

The chamber, which is contributing $100,000 from its reserves, will give priority to restaurant owners who have not received any previous emergency relief, she said. Several businesses are providing the additional $50,000: Capital BlueCross, Boyle Construction, Dellicker Strategies, Embassy Bank and Fromm Electric.

Steve DiDonato of Bethlehem, a wine importer and spokesperson for the Lehigh Valley Restaurant Owners Alliance, said the grants likely won’t rescue struggling restaurateurs; one local restaurant group he declined to name is losing an estimated $1.2 million per week.

“But nobody’s going to turn down money,” DiDonato said, adding that restaurants should be able to remain open amid the pandemic. “They need to be operating.”

In the spring, the chamber doled out more than $350,000 in grants to struggling small businesses. And separately, the business group last week rolled out the Lehigh Valley Takeout

Challenge, offering anyone who orders takeout food or buys gift cards from area bars and restaurants a chance to win a gift card.

The Chamber, along with the LV Gay Journal, is giving away a $50 and $25 gift card each week until the challenge ends Jan. 4.

For more on that cause, go to lehighvalleychamber.org/ takeoutchallenge.

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