With ever-changing regulations placed on public-facing hospitality venues and other challenges presented by COVID-19, local breweries have been hit hard by the pandemic. Nearly all have been forced to furlough or lay off significant portions of their staff, making it even harder to pivot their business models as the region shuts down, opens then shuts down again. It’s been a tough situation, but today a vehicle for potential relief for San Diego brewing companies is being announced: the BEER Fund.
Later today, San Diego City Councilmember Chris Cate of District 6 (which includes brewery-dense communities Miramar and Kearny Mesa) and County Supervisor Jim Desmond from District 5 (home to the municipalities along North County’s Hops Highway—Oceanside, Carlsbad, Vista and San Marcos), will announce the establishment of the Breweries Experiencing Economic Roadblocks (BEER) Fund. The purpose of the fund is to provide struggling breweries and their employees support during the pandemic in an effort to keep as many from going out of business as possible.
To effectively accomplish that mission, BEER Fund dollars will be awarded to the San Diego Brewers Guild, a non-profit made up primarily of volunteers from within the industry to represent local brewing companies’ interests. That organization will take charge of distributing BEER Fund money where it can be of most effective use. That includes breweries that do not have on-site food capabilities. Those businesses, in particular, have been disproportionately affected in a negative manner due to recent County of San Diego Public Health regulations.
“One quarter of the city’s breweries are in my council district. I have been steadfast in my support for this industry,” says Cate, who serves as the City of San Diego Economic Development and Intergovernmental Relations Committee Chair. “Proactively establishing the BEER Fund, not just for the breweries and their employees, will help this vital industry get through this difficult time.”
Cate and his staff conceived the idea for the BEER Fund, recognizing San Diego breweries’ stellar worldwide reputation and the significant economic impact the brewing industry has on the region. Cate cites the industry’s 6,275 jobs and $1.67 billion impact on San Diego’s economy in 2018 as examples, along with a countywide brewery count of 187 in 2019, more than any single county in the United States.
Money in the BEER Fund will come from the County as well as private donations. Everyday San Diegans may contribute to the BEER Fund via GoFundMe. The initial fundraising goal is $10,000. The Guild’s Board of Directors is in the process of developing criteria for determining how to distribute BEER Fund.