Federal Grant Provides Laughs
By Danny Monahan
Small Business Administration Vermont District Office
A recipient of one of the largest Shuttered Venue Operator Grants awarded in Vermont is scheduled to host its grand re-opening Thursday evening in Burlington.
The Vermont Comedy Club, founded and owned by Nathan Hartswick and Natalie Miller in 2015, was awarded a $408,319.65 SVOG.
The SVOG Program is overseen by the Small Business Administration and its purpose is to provide emergency grants to eligible live venues affected by COVID-19. More than $16.2 billion was appropriated for grants via the Economic Aid to Hard-Hit Small Businesses, Nonprofits and Venues Act and the American Rescue Plan Act. Eligible applicants could qualify for grants equal to 45% of their gross earned revenue up to a maximum amount of $10 million for a single grant.
Miller said she had a range of emotions when she was notified in July that the Vermont Comedy club was awarded a grant.
“Relief, excitement, finally. I had so many emotions and so many things were running through my mind when I read we were receiving funding. I knew then we were going to be able to reopen and get back to doing what we love to do,” said Miller.
SVOG funds could be used for a variety of expenses including payroll, rent, mortgage, utilities, taxes, insurance, and refunding ticket holders for events canceled in 2020 due to the pandemic.
“We have spent a significant amount already. We’ve spent it on talent, staff, rent, utilities. We had to basically hire a new staff after being closed for 18 months. We also made changes to the floorplan to accommodate social distancing,” said Miller.
Headlining the club’s grand re-opening Thursday to Saturday is Kyle Kinane, a stand-up comedian and the voice of Comedy Central from 2012 to 2019. Several of his shows this weekend are already sold out.
“Kyle played Vermont Comedy Club during the last full weekend it was open in March 2020, so it only makes sense to have him back, so the club can rise from the ashes like a hilarious phoenix.”
Although the club’s grand re-opening is Thursday evening, the club did host a soft re-opening Aug. 21.
“It felt great, but it was also overwhelming. I am not one to be demonstrative with my feelings. I walked on stage and immediately started to cry. I missed having a room full of people there to laugh. For years, I interacted with thousands of people every week and then we went into the pandemic and into our homes for more than a year. And now we’re back,” said Miller.
Fifty-Nine small businesses and organizations throughout 36 Vermont cities and towns have received more than $18.7 million in SVOGs as of Aug. 27. More than 11,500 SVOGs worth $9 billion have been awarded throughout the country.
On Monday the SBA began emailing invitations to recipients, including The Vermont Comedy Club, to apply for a supplemental SVOG, which will be awarded to venues that received an initial grant and have illustrated a 70% loss when comparing 2021’s first-quarter revenue to 2019’s first-quarter revenue.