“Ask any investor what’s a key component to making a project thrive and they will say: a long-term perspective. It’s the same for an investment in the arts — from the buildings to the artists and creative programming that breathe life into them.”
My work supporting the region’s creative and cultural districts continues to put me in contact with arts and culture spaces across the metro area. These organizations are cornerstones of their communities, and we are hearing from many of them about an increasingly urgent need for capital paired with an inability to reconcile the post-COVID cash flow. It’s a recipe ripe for another series of losses if we are not careful.
Thanks for sharing!
Performing Arts Management & Consulting
3wWhen MN voters were on the cusp in 2008 of approving a constitutional amendment to increase and allocate sales taxes for a variety of infrastructure priorities, I wrote in support of the effort and included suggestions for how the anticipated infusion of new arts funding might be allocated: • $2.5 million pool of funds for annual planning and capital construction grants for projects with a total cost up to $10 million, administered by the MSAB and Forum of Regional Arts Councils convened as the Minnesota Cultural Facilities Commission. This body would also recommend statewide priorities for larger capital bonding projects. • Annual $850,000 pool of technical assistance funds administered by the RACs for all MSAB and RAC grantees for equipment and technical assistance. • Annual grant of $250,000 to Performing Arts Archives at the University of Minnesota, earmarked for acquisition and archiving of records from performing arts organizations. • $500,000 pool of commissioning funds available to individual artists and organizations to commission new work from Minnesota artists in all disciplines. [My complete commentary can be read here: http://minnesotamist (dot) blogspot (dot) com/2008/10/nov-4-vote-yes-for-minnesota.html]