LIMA — Entertainment venues were among the hardest hit businesses during the COVID-19 pandemic, but live shows are finally coming back. In Lima, the Veterans Memorial Civic and Convention Center is set to play host to a variety of shows in what they are calling their “comeback season.”

Part of the comeback season was made possible by a big dose of federal funding.

As part of the American Rescue Plan Act, U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown of Ohio cosponsored the Save Our Stages legislation, meant to help entertainment venues bounce back from the pandemic. The legislation sprouted the Shuttered Venue Operator Grants (SVOG) that saw over $300 million in relief funding for more than 400 Ohio venues.

Brown was in Lima on Thursday to visit the Civic Center as the Lima Symphony Orchestra gets ready for a Saturday night performance that will be the first live show for the players and the venue since the pandemic began. The Civic Center received $400,000 in SVOG funding and the orchestra received an additional $130,000 in funding from the bill.

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