TULSA, Okla. — It would be hard to find an area of Tulsa not feeling the pressure of the COVID-19 pandemic, but there’s no doubt one of the hardest hit areas is downtown Tulsa.
With stay at home orders in place, dozens of restaurants and local shops have either been forced to close or drastically change how they do business.
One of the many downtown businesses feeling this pain is the Tulsa Performing Arts Center.
Frie said the venue normally hosts 500 or more events per year with its four spaces for performances, but now, everything is dark.
“It’s a dynamic situation for us since we have no definitive date when we know we can go back to work.” Tulsa PAC CEO Mark Frie told KRMG.
“We don’t have anything on the books until June.” Frie said. “I’m not very positive that June will happen either... I wake up every day just truly not knowing what’s next.”
Frie said the pandemic will be a costly one for the Tulsa PAC.
“This is going to cost us, in the long run, millions of dollars.” Frie said.
Frie told KRMG he thinks the pandemic will undoubtedly be a setback for downtown Tulsa, but he thinks people return to restaurants, shops and entertainment venues when it’s safe to do so.
Listen to our full interview with Tulsa PAC CEO Mark Frie here