By Melissa Yeager and Jessica Boehm | The Republic
As cities and counties across the United States have moved swiftly to offer rent relief to the concessionaires and retailers in their airports, similar discussions crawl forward in Phoenix with some City Council members pushing back on who should benefit.
Owners of restaurants and small businesses at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport, whose business has dropped more than 90% due to the near standstill in air traffic caused by the novel coronavirus, are begging for help. They warn that Phoenix’s acclaimed airport restaurant scene could collapse.
Yet, even as the council moved to create a $1 million small-business grant fund for those struggling airport businesses, negotiationsover the help the businesses say they need the most — rent relief — have stalled with some council members taking aim at the two largest concessionaires that would also benefit.
