CLEVELAND, Ohio — Nano Rached is the owner of “Sittoo’s, located right in Playhouse Square.  

Many of the restaurants in Cleveland’s theater district have closed due to the pandemic and the ones that remain open are struggling to stay open.

Rached says his business is down 70 percent. 
 
“We have no college, we have no playhouse next door, everything was canceled. A lot of the employees did not come to work at the building and we don’t have people downtown,” said Rached. 

Playhouse Square has announced that shows scheduled for late summer and fall, including sold-out runs of “Hamilton” and “Disney Frozen,” have been pushed back due to the COVID-19 crisis. 

The decision to postpone or cancel hundreds of planned performances will have a domino effect throughout Cleveland.  

Emily Lauer is the senior director of public relations for Destination Cleveland, the city's convention and visitors bureau. 
 
“You have events canceled that then rolls in to places where you might go before or after events for a drink or a meal. It’s not just the events personnel that are affected at that location, it's really cascading citywide,” Lauer said. 
 
The news is also devastating to hotels. According to the Ohio Hotel and Lodging Association, the hotel industry across the state is losing $2.4 billion in earnings each week.

In downtown Cleveland, both hotels and restaurants are seeking ways to bounce back.  
 
“It’s going to hurt us, it’s gonna be bad, it was one of the best things for us, ya know, people when they come here at night and they stop and they have dinner before they go in the theater, was the best thing for us— not anymore, but you know what? We gonna survive, we'll be alright,” said Rached.