In an effort to help local restaurants recover from the economic setbacks caused by the pandemic, the Kent County Board of Commissioners Wednesday announced it is waiving food licensing fees for all existing good establishments. The waiver comes from a unanimous vote from the Kent County Board of Commissioners to suspend the 2022-2023 food licensing fees for restaurants within the county line.
The roughly $1.2 million generated from the fees will instead by supplemented by funds from the American Rescue Plan Act. In late 2021, Kent County was awarded more than $127 million in pandemic recovery aid.
Stan Stek chairs the Kent County Board of Commissioners. He says, while the licensing fee waiver isn’t going to magically fix a number of struggling restaurants financial issues, it is more of a symbolic gesture from the county to provide some much-needed support to area restaurants.
“We understand that restaurants are a major driver of our economy, and many establishments are still struggling to recover from the economic setbacks caused by the pandemic,” said Kent County Board of Commissioners Chair Stan Stek. “We trust this fee waiver will provide much-needed support to keep these businesses going and ensure that they can continue to serve our community.”
Restaurants are required to submit a renewal application by April 30, 2022, which will ensure establishments remain licensed during the 2022-2023 operating period.
According to a press release from the Commission, the waiver applies to all 2,372 restaurants in Kent County.
