ICYMI: Milwaukee Area Businesses Receive Live Event Venue Assistance Grants

STATE OF WISCONSIN

DEPARTMENT OF ADMINISTRATION

Tony Evers, Governor

Kathy Blumenfeld, Secretary-designee

ICYMI: Milwaukee Area Businesses Receive Live Event Venue Assistance Grants

Community-Focused Small Business Visit from DOA Secretary-designee Blumenfeld

Milwaukee, Wis. – On Tuesday, June 7, Wisconsin Department of Administration (DOA) Secretary-designee Kathy Blumenfeld made a visit to local small businesses and recipients of the Event Venue and Live Event Small Business Assistance Grants. The visits highlighted the ongoing local recovery and impact from Governor Evers’ overall Badger Bounceback effort.

Main Street Alliance joined DOA in meeting with Bounce Milwaukee and Cactus Club owners to hear about the impact of their respective grants and learn about their pandemic recovery progress. The visit also corresponded with the Governor announcing an additional $1 million investment to support community safety, engagement, and programming for young people during the summer months.

(DOA Secretary-designee Kathy Blumenfeld meets with Bounce Milwaukee owner Becky Cooper and Cactus Club owner Kelsey Kaufmann on June 7, 2022) 

Bounce Milwaukee, a family-owned and community-oriented entertainment venue received a $200,000 grant, while the woman-owned Cactus Club performance space received nearly $90,000. These grants were part of a roughly $200 million investment by Governor Evers into the critical tourism and entertainment industries, the largest investment for the tourism industry in Wisconsin state history. More than $30 million went to support more than 225 small businesses across the state through the Event Venue and Live Event Small Business Grants, awarded in December 2021. Additional information on those programs is available here and here.

(L-R: Secretary-designee Blumenfeld, Becky Cooper, Shawn Phetteplace)

“Timely investments from Governor Evers enabled community-focused venues to continue to bring people together in a safe way, and make sure that businesses remained open,” said DOA secretary-designee Blumenfeld. “It’s so important to hear from small business owners across Wisconsin who struggled but also persevered, and we are proud to highlight their ongoing success.”  

(L-R: Secretary-designee Blumenfeld, Shawn Phetteplace, Kelsey Kaufmann)

“These grants were a critical lifeline for two businesses that were dramatically impacted by the pandemic,” said Shawn Phetteplace, Midwest Regional Manager for Main Street Alliance. “Through investments in main street businesses such as the Live Event venue grant, Main Street Bounceback grant, Wisconsin Tomorrow, We’re All In and support of the Diverse and Ethnic Business organizations, Wisconsin has seen one of the largest investments in small business in our country. Thank you Secretary Designee Kathy Blumenfeld, and thanks to Governor Evers for taking the lead on supporting Main Street businesses and leading the country in investing in small business."

Main Street Alliance is a small business advocacy organization representing nearly 500 small businesses in Wisconsin, including Bounce Milwaukee and Cactus Club.

Wisconsinites can visit BadgerBounceback.wi.gov to view pandemic-related assistance information for families, farmers, businesses, organizations, and communities, as well as the latest data and success stories about how COVID-relief investments are making a difference across the state. For updates on other recovery-related grant opportunities, sign up for the Badger Bounceback update list.