Most New York City restaurants can't pay rent
NEW YORK - A new survey of hundreds of restaurants, bars, and clubs is painting a dire picture for the New York City hospitality industry.
87% percent of restaurants in the survey reported that they could not pay their May rent, or only paid a portion of it.
The NYC Hospitality Alliance survey also found that 61% of restaurants say they cannot operate at an occupancy that is less than 70% and expect to stay in business. Almost 13% say that they can't survive without operating at 100% capacity.
Only 7.5% of respondents have, or will, begin hiring back employees in time for their federal bailout loans to be forgivable. The rest don't believe they can meet the terms for loan forgiveness, meaning they will become debt for them that many will struggle to repay.
The NYC Hospitality Alliance is a nonprofit trade group that represents the hospitality industry. The information gathered is based on activity in April and May of 2020.