Music community, mayor ask for release of SAVES funds

Austin Texas Musicians and the Amplified Sound Coalition will gather at City Hall today to urge city leaders to distribute the SAVES funding that was promised to venues. The effort has the support of Mayor Steve Adler, who wrote in a press release, “City Council enacted the SAVES initiative which provided funding and support to preserve viable, legacy venues jeopardized by the pandemic. More state and federal support is sorely needed, but we urge the city manager to immediately connect with targeted venues and provide a timeline and application for city support. The city needs to act quickly.” The city has not acted quickly in releasing the funds, which were promised in an Oct. 1 vote. A press release about the rally notes that no money has been issued to venues, and organizers are wary that a city memo “suggests that funds may not be available until 2021.” The release continues, “While we agree that careful consideration be made in the creation of program requirements, we ask our city leaders to make $2 million of the $5 million available for immediate aid, as many venues are at risk of closing their doors within the next months.”