Senator Kirsten Gillibrand is asking for the government to open up the tab for the hospitality industry before more businesses are closed and workers lose their jobs.
New York’s junior senator was joined by renowned chef Tom Colicchio, owner of Crafted Hospitality and founding member of the Independent Restaurant Coalition, on Zoom Thursday afternoon to remind the government that despite the COVID-19 recovery efforts, independent restaurants are still wrestling to stay afloat amid crippling debts to landlords built up over the course of the pandemic.
The pair also cited additional costs incurred due to the pandemic, such as air ventilation upgrades, as contributing factors to the financial losses of business owners. Colicchio himself admits that he is among the hundreds of entrepreneurs in the restaurant business who owe a seemingly insurmountable sum in back rent payments.
