If your business has an active on-premises liquor permit (as of October 23, 2020), you are eligible for a bar grant of $2,500 for each location.
On December 30, 2020, the State of Ohio released an update stating:
“More than 5,100 eligible on-premises liquor permit holders have not yet applied for state assistance through Ohio’s Bar & Restaurant Grant Program. Of the $38.7 million allotted to support liquor permit holders, more than $12 million remains unclaimed.”
The funding is part of the dollars Ohio received from the federal CARES Act and has been accepting applications since November 2, 2020.
The process to apply for the grant is straightforward and does not take much time. Although the name of the program is “The Bar and Restaurant Assistance Fund”, any business that holds an eligible liquor permit is eligible to apply, meaning sports venues, movie theaters, even some hair salons, are eligible.
The grant does not have to be repaid.
“We’re not a bar or a restaurant, but we still qualified because we have a state liquor permit,” says Amanda Anderson, Wine and Cheese Director for The Hills Market Downtown.
“After filling out the form, we received an email that we were approved right away, and a check arrived a few weeks later,” she says.
Anderson stated that Hills Market Downtown had also received the $3,500 grant to restock the bar, and other assistance; so being a recipient of earlier grant funding has no bearing on whether a business will qualify for the $2,500 Bar & Restaurant Grant.
This grant joins other support for liquor permit holders throughout the 2020 pandemic.
Update 1/6/2021: The deadline to apply for the Bar and Restaurant Assistance Fund has been extended to January 31.
Permit holders who have not yet claimed their funds should visit businesshelp.ohio.gov to apply.