Press Releases

Springfield, MA - Today, Congressman Richard E. Neal visited the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame to announce $3,740,728 in funding from the U.S. Small Business Administration’s (SBA) Shuttered Venues Operation Grant (SVOG) program. Joining Neal for this announcement was President and CEO of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame John Doleva.

“These funds are incredibly instrumental to operations like the Basketball Hall of Fame who suffered greatly because of the pandemic,” said Congressman Richard E. Neal. “For the safety of the American people, the government forced these agencies to close their doors. And now, it is the government again stepping in to make sure that they are able to get back on their feet.”

Doleva said, “The Shuttered Venue Operations Grant commitment means the Basketball Hall of Fame can stabilize its business operations that were so severely impacted over the last 15 months and allow us to better position ourselves for long term survival and future growth. Without the SBA’s SVOG many venues, like ours, would have struggled to regain footing and suffered long term consequences that for some may have been permanent.”

SVOG was established by the Economic Aid to Hard-Hit Small Businesses, Nonprofits, and Venues Act, and amended by the American Rescue Plan Act. The program includes over $16 billion in grants to shuttered venues, to be administered by SBA’s Office of Disaster Assistance. Eligible entities include live venue operators or promoters; theatrical producers; live performing arts organization operators; museum operators; motion picture theater operators (including owners); and talent representatives.

Across Massachusetts, there have been 244 grants awarded totaling $194,408,323. There are 33 in the First Congressional District that total $20,010,864 and include:

• Agawam Cinemas, Agawam - $49,815
• Jacobs Pillow Dance Festival, Becket - $1,492,373
• Chester Theatre Company, Chester - $81,357
• Public Emily, Inc., Conway - $193,779
• Stationery Factory Events, Dalton - $132,652
• Luthier’s Co-Op, Easthampton - $134,398
• Berkshire Choral International, Great Barrington - $525,735
• Berkshire International Film Festival, Great Barrington - $47,713
• Mahaiwe Performing Arts Center, Great Barrington - $296,530
• Shaw Entertainment Group, Great Barrington - $99,114
• Massachusetts International Festival of the Arts, Holyoke - $491,035
• Athlone Artists, Lenox - $15,187
• Edith Wharton Restoration, Lenox - $184,493
• WAM Theatre, Lenox - $43,383
• Exit Seven Players, Ludlow - $43,996
• HiLo Holding Company, North Adams - $116,523
• Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art Foundation, North Adams - $2,636,094
• Barrington Stage Company, Pittsfield - $608,989
• Berkshire Theatre Group, Pittsfield - $923,619
• Corcoran Productions, Richmond - $28,253
• PDP Productions, Shelburne - $11,350
• The Egremont Village Inn, South Egremont - $257,720
• Triplex Management Corporation, South Egremont - $396,099
• South Hadley’s Tower Theatres - $167,865
• Bold New Directors, Southampton - $287,040
• Cindy Pettibone, Southwick - $52,476
• Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, Springfield - $3,740,728
• Springfield Symphony Orchestra, Springfield - $285,817
• Old Sturbridge, Inc., Sturbridge - $2,858,798
• NV Concepts Unlimited, West Springfield - $1,609,453
• The Theatre Project, West Springfield - $726,224
• Community Images Inc, Williamstown - $124,765
• Williamstown Theatre Foundation, Williamstown - $1,347,489

More information on SVOG can be found HERE.

The SVOG public report as of July 19, 2021 can be found HERE.

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