Testimony in Support of HB 669 - Small Nation, Jason Duff (May 28, 2020)

Summary

Testimony in support of HB 669 for Small Nation, dated May 28, 2020, addressed to the House Commerce and Labor Committee from Jason Duff, Founder & CEO. The testimony describes Small Nation's involvement in the revitalization of downtown Bellefontaine, a town of roughly 13,000 people in Logan County, and states nearly $17 million in new private investment. It states that Small Nation operates three restaurants and that carryout and delivery services, particularly of alcoholic beverages, have been critical to their survival. It supports making those options permanent, expanding restaurant footprints to full property boundaries, and outdoor dining.

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Full text

 Small Nation Testimony in Support
 of HB 669



May 28, 2020




Chair Manning, Vice-Chair Dean, Ranking Member Lepore-Hagan and Members of the House
Commerce and Labor Committee:

Small Nation has been intimately involved in the revitalization of downtown Bellefontaine, a
town of roughly 13,000 people in Logan County. Ten years ago, our downtown was not a place
you would bring your family or consider spending your money in – mostly because there were
no businesses to spend money in. Our vacancy rate was high, and our city’s confidence was
shaken. Over the last seven years, my team and I have rehabbed thirty historic buildings,
helped over twenty new small businesses get on their feet, and created over twenty-four new
upper-floor loft apartments, all culminating in nearly $17 million in new private investment and
over one hundred and twenty jobs. We are proud of our town.

The key factor to our downtown’s resurgence has been our restaurants. Our restaurants drive
the foot traffic necessary to help our retailers make money and imbues an energy in the
downtown that makes people want to live there. Our downtown is a living, breathing
ecosystem that relies on every cog turning. Keeping local, independent restaurants strong is a
critical part of preserving the progress we have made in our downtown, as well as a necessity
for dozens of other downtowns across our state.

We operate three restaurants in our community, and carryout and delivery services have been
critical to their survival, particularly of alcoholic beverages. We appreciate the General
Assembly’s understanding that these profitable offerings are necessary to help small businesses
likes ours survive, and we support making these options permanent. We also support
expanding restaurant footprints to allow owners to utilize their full property boundaries in the
operation of their business.

Additionally, outdoor dining not only expands the ability of restaurants to add capacity to their
operations in a safe and responsible way, it also provides another avenue for small business to
drive revenue during this trying time. Empowering local policymakers with the ability to make
the best decisions for their local communities and supporting the small businesses in their
towns and cities with greater flexibility and permanency to allow outdoor dining will be critical
this summer season. It also reinjects energy into a downtown district while safely allowing
patrons to enjoy their favorite meal this summer.

We thank this committee and the General Assembly for supporting this vital industry in our
state, as well as small and large communities across Ohio.




Jason Duff
Founder & CEO
Small Nation




                                                   SMALL NATION
                               130 S MAIN ST, SUITE 101B • BELLEFONTAINE, OH 43311
                                                   (937) 565-4580
                                        WWW.SMALLNATIONSTRONG.COM


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