ORLANDO, Fla. – Breweries hit hard by weeks of closures asked Florida’s governor and their licensing agency for a economic lifeline on Tuesday.
The Florida Brewers Guild posted an open letter on social media addressed to Gov. Ron DeSantis and the Department of Business Regulation on Tuesday.
“...our internal polling has revealed that we are likely to lose more than 100 breweries permanently if this continues for more than two weeks,” the letter read.
The letter claims that could result in more than 3,000 additional people out of work.
“It’s starting to get scary now,” said Robert McKee, Chief Operating Officer for Ellipsis Brewery in Orlando.
He said his business has been reduced to to-go only service for weeks, and that has reduced his revenue by 90 percent.
He said he fears his dream business could be near an end.
“If things don’t change, then, we could be looking at 30 days,” he said. “It’s terrifying. We have our entire life savings wrapped up in this.”
“So many of the breweries can’t keep up with that,” said Glenn Clossen.
Clossen founded Ivanhoe Park Brewery, and he also sits on the board of the Florida Brewers Guild.
“We are hoping that (the letter) has the governor’s office aware of how many jobs are created and how much economy were bringing,” he said.
The letter asks the governor and DBPR to allow breweries to reopen, claiming their business model is different than bars.
“We don’t operate like traditional bars do,” McKee said. “We’re not rowdy, we’re not dancing, nobody’s cluttered around the bar.”
McKee said the “bad actors” of any industry need to be dealt with, but he is following the CDC guidelines and trying to keep his customers safe.
“Take action against individuals who choose to not abide by the rules, not an entire industry,” he said.
News 6 contacted the governor’s office and DBPR for a comment on the letter they received, and they have not responded.
Clossen said they will continue to post the letter online and send copies of it to both government agencies until they get results.
