Local arts industry on the rebound after negative impact from pandemic

YUMA, Ariz. (KYMA, KECY) - The Small Business Administration (SBA) is taking longer than expected to send out grants to performing arts centers and live venues that were forced to close during the pandemic.
 
On Wednesday, Sen. Mark Kelly along with 55 other senators has sent a letter to the SBA urging it to speed up the process as more businesses try to open back up.

Its been nearly six months since Congress passed the bill allocating funds to the SBA. They’ve already received over 14-thousand applications for the shuttered venue and operators grant program. However since June 14th, only 411 grants had been awarded nationwide, and according to SBA data, 11 of those were given to venues in Arizona.
 
The Yuma Arts Center tells CBS 13's Cody Lee the venue was not eligible for the SBA grant because it is a government entity.
 
Joseph Benesh is with the Arizona Citizens for the Arts and says there are ways to get back in the community and show off your creativity.

“Smaller organizations, being the fact that they're smaller than maybe community-oriented or more grassroots or volunteer-driven. They don't have that person to sit down and write out an application, they don't have that person to study what everybody else is doing and say great, maybe we can try a drive-in, and maybe we can try some driveway, not drive-in like driveway performances.”

The organization’s job is to tell stories of the arts industry to legislators that way funding is designated in the budget.
 
Benesh says around 70 to 80 percent of taxpayers support money going to the arts.

This year the Arizona citizens for the arts are asking for five million dollars which is then reinvested into local arts centers and artists.