Aided By A $6.7 Million PPP Loan, LACMA Plans To Reopen In July

By John Horn

Published Jun 22, 2020 4:44 PM

The Los Angeles County Museum of Art now says it will reopen next month with its entire staff intact, thanks to a substantial government loan.

LACMA, which receives about 40% of its operating budget from the County of Los Angeles, secured a $6.7 million loan from the federal Paycheck Protection Program.

Michael Govan, LACMA's director, told us that without that loan:

"We would have had to furlough or reduce staff. It's done exactly what it was intended to do — it's kept everybody working. We have a lot of [employees] who are young and have families to support."

The museum has 476 employees, and about a dozen of them are paid directly by the county. The federal loan money can only be used on salaries for employees not covered by the county.

Support for LAist comes from

Become a sponsor

The announcement that the museum has not, at least for now, reducing its workforce is in stark contrast to what's happened due to the pandemic at some other leading cultural institutions. The -Center Theatre Group and the Los Angeles Philharmonic, for example, have had to cancel entire seasons and lay off or furlough scores of employees.

READ OUR FULL STORY:

LACMA To Reopen In July, Thanks To A Large PPP Loan

RELATED STORIES:

Keep up with LAist

Aided By A $6.7 Million PPP Loan, LACMA Plans To Reopen In July