Sarasota Mayor Hagen Brody on Friday sent letters to both of Florida’s U.S. senators seeking support in the next coronavirus relief package for publicly run entertainment venues. The request comes as the Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall continues to financially struggle following the cancellation of most programming this year.

“The two new bills on the horizon offering relief to publicly owned venues would be vital in support of this theater,” Brody writes in letters to Sen. Marco Rubio and Rick Scott. “The Hall’s beloved main stage productions have been shut down since March 2020 when the COVID-19 pandemic took center stage, and about 70% of the theater’s staff members have been furloughed or have lost their jobs altogether as a result.”

Remaining staff, many working with cut back hours, continue to provide programming, whether that’s digital programming, like streaming holiday performances in connection with BroadwayHD, or it is limited attendance events with socially distancing for indoor and outdoor activities.

“Their resilience is remarkable, but funding is necessary to keep this institution alive as we look to the future for a safe reopening of the main hall,” Brody said.

In Washington, the House and Senate have struggled for months to reach an agreement on another round of relief, with the costs providing a major obstacle between the Republican-led Senate and the Democrat-controlled House. The chambers appear to have settled at a price tag of around $908 billion. But one of the sticking points appears to be that the House wants funding for local governments. The Senate feels reluctance to do so.

Scott in particular has said it’s a mistake to bail out state and local governments that have suffered only because business restrictions put in place have reduced revenues. In places without restrictions, collections have not taken such a severe hit. “State and local governments’ projected revenue shortfalls due to the coronavirus have not come to fruition – which is a great thing,” Scott said earlier this month. But he has directed those comments primarily at metropolitan cities and blue states like Michigan and New York that have extended lockdown regulations for a much longer period than Florida.

Neither of Florida’s Republican senators has spoken specifically to support for publicly owned venues, which did not receive any bailout funding in the first CARES Package while private venues could partake in federal programs to assist businesses.

Congress just passed a spending bill, signed by President Donald Trump, that averts a government shutdown for a week. That signals lawmakers intend to reach a final deal this week and settle on what entities receive federal relief funding moving forward.