1998 Cultural Grants: Operating & Project Grant Allocations

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORT
Date: March 10, 1998
Author/Local: A. Niwinski/6007

CC File No. 2051

TO:

Vancouver City Council

FROM:

Director, Office of Cultural Affairs

SUBJECT:
1998 Cultural Grants: Operating & Project Grant Allocations

RECOMMENDATIONS
A.THAT Council approve the transfer of $21,715 from the Operating Grants category to the Project Grants category, providing for an Operating Grants budget of $1,264,900, and a Project Grants budget of $91,715.

B.THAT Council approve 74 Operating Grants totalling $1,264,900, and 30 Project Grants totalling $78,000, as listed in Appendix A, for a total of $1,342,900, including conditions on grants where noted. Source of funds to be the 1998 Cultural Grants budget.

GENERAL MANAGER’S COMMENTS

The General Manager of Community Services RECOMMENDS approval of the foregoing.

COUNCIL POLICY

City Council confirmed the criteria used in assessing Cultural Grant applications on February 3, 1987, and approved the current Cultural Grant categories (Operating, Project, Grants Equal to Rent and Incentive) on December 14, 1989.

On November 22, 1994, Council approved a new two-step grant approval process whereby undisputed staff recommendations are approved first (and are the subject of this report), while applications under reconsideration are given a second review and are presented to Council at a later date.

Approval of grant recommendations requires eight affirmative votes.

SUMMARY

As listed alphabetically in Appendix A, this report recommends approval of 104 Operating and Project Grants totalling $1,342,900. All recommendations include any advance installments already approved by Council.

Not included in Appendix A are five applicants requesting reconsideration, as indicated in Appendix B. Their applications will be considered by Council on April 23rd. The recommendations in this report, together with the recommendations for applicants requesting reconsideration, amount to $1,344,900, leaving an unallocated balance of $11,715, as detailed in Table 1.

Appendix C provides a summary of all 1998 Operating and Project grant recommendations by activity (those considered in this report as well as those that will be reconsidered later), compared to grants in the previous year.

In addition, a package of the front pages of all applications, with staff comments, was sent to each member of Council in advance.

PURPOSE

This report recommends 1998 Cultural Grant allocations in the Operating and Project categories, for all grant applications other than those referred to the reconsideration process.

BACKGROUND

This year, 87 Operating and 44 Project grant requests amounting to $1,712,740 were received. Following a review of these 131 applications, staff have concluded that 10 applications in Operating would be more appropriately funded in the Project category. This applies to groups that do not have a long track record of civic funding, that are currentlyworking on a project by project basis, or to whom staff, after evaluation, are only prepared to recommend funding designated for a specific activity.

Staff, therefore, recommend that the Cultural Grants budget approved by Council on February 5, 1998 be adjusted by transferring $21,715 from the Operating to the Project category, providing for an Operating budget of $1,264,900 and Project budget of $91,715. Unallocated funds in either category can be used to address any changes that result from the reconsideration process.

Based on this adjusted budget, staff have recommended approval of 74 Operating grants and 31 Project grants, for a total of $1,344,900, leaving no unallocated balance in Operating and a balance of $11,715 in Projects. Following applicant notification of these recommendations, five applicants have requested reconsideration (see Appendix B). Only one of these has been recommended for a grant, in the Project category.

DISCUSSION

Recommendations

This report deals with the 126 cultural grant applicants that have accepted staff recommendations (see Appendix A). The five requests for reconsideration will be presented to Council in April, following further review. In addition, any recommendations in this report not approved by Council will be referred to the reconsideration process, so that applicants may have the opportunity to speak to Council’s concerns.

A summary of staff recommendations for all 131 applicants, together with the unallocated balance in the adjusted Operating and Project budgets is provided in Table 1, following.

Table 1

Funding Recommendations for All Applications

Currently Requests for Total Unallocated

Recommended Reconsideration Recommended Balance

Operating $1,264,900 0 $1,264,900 0

Project $ 78,000 $2,000 $ 80,000 $11,715

TOTAL $1,342,900 $2,000 $1,344,900 $11,715

Criteria

The recommendations in this report have been made in the context of a changing economic and social environment that has challenged arts organizations to find new ways of operating and relating to the community at large. To maximize the effectiveness of City support, staff have based their recommendations not only on artistic merit, financial need and organizational competence, but on applicants’ capacity for organizational change, diversification of revenue sources, accessibility to the broader community and contribution to the health of the cultural sector as a whole. As in the past, a number of grant recommendations to smaller and developing organizations have been made, focusing on support for diversity, artistic innovation and community access.

A summary of the number of grants recommended and not recommended, compared to those in previous years is provided in Table 2, following.

Table 2

Overview of Recommendations

for Operating and Project Grants

No. of Groups No. of Groups No. of Groups No. of Groups

1998 1997 1996 1995

Total 131 136 143 150

Not recommended: 26 28 23 31

Recommended: 105 108 120 119

Decreased 5 9 6 11

Held at same level 61 66 64 49

Increased 29 19 34 41

New 10 14 16 18

CONCLUSION

This report and the reconsideration report to be presented on April 23rd are the main reports on Operating and Project grants scheduled for 1998. A limited number of additional Project grants may be considered later this year, if funds are available and applicants can demonstrate that they could not have applied earlier. In 1997 two such project grants were approved after the main grant process. Reports on the other Cultural Grant programs, including 1998/99 Grants Equal to Theatre Rent and Incentive grants, will be presented later in the year. * * * * *

Appendix A

City of Vancouver Cultural Grants 1998

Operating and Project Applications, Alphabetical List

(organizations not requesting reconsideration)

(Column 1) (Column 2) (Column 3) (Column 4)

Organization Name Grant 1998 1998 1997 1997

Type Recomm. Request Grant Other Civic Support

1	Arts Club of Vancouver Theatre Society	OP*	75,000	75,000	68,000
2	Artspeak Gallery	OP*	9,000	10,000	8,000	CCI $2,500; CAP $20,000
3	Assembly of B.C. Arts Councils	OP	1,500	2,500	1,500	SUP $4,500
4	Axis Theatre Soc.	OP*	11,500	12,500	11,500	VS
5	Ballet B.C. Soc.	OP*	80,000	90,000	80,000	GR $51,200
6	Bard on the Beach Theatre Soc.	OP*	9,500	12,000	9,500	VS
7	Battery Opera Peforming Arts Society	PR	1,500	5,000	1,500
8	Big House Production Soc.	PR	0	1,500	-
9	B.C. Book Prizes	OP	3,500	4,000	3,500
10	B.C. Glass Arts Soc.	PR	0	2,000	0
11	Can. Craft Museum Assoc.	OP*	24,000	24,000	24,000	VS
12	Can. Intl. Drum Festival Soc.	PR	0	10,000	-
13	Can. Music Centre - B.C.	OP*	11,000	11,000	10,500
14	Carousel Theatre Soc.	OP*	19,000	21,500	19,000
15	Centre Culturel Francophone de Vancouver (le Festival d'été)	PR	2,500	5,000	1,500
16	Chamber Music Festival	OP*	10,000	11,000	8,500
17	Children's Arts Umbrella	OP*	15,000	20,000	15,000
18	Children's Festival (CIAYA)	OP*	116,400	120,000	116,400	OD $2,272; VS
19	Chinese Cultural Centre of Vancouver	PR	2,500	6,050	2,500	VS
20	Chor Leoni Men's Choir	PR	1,000	5,000	1,000
21	Cineworks Independent Filmmakers Soc.	OP*	15,000	20,000	15,000	VS
22	Coastal Jazz and Blues Soc.	OP*	10,000	10,000	10,000	GR $7,000
23	Community Arts Council of Vancouver	OP	7,000	12,000	9,000	VS

24	Contemporary Art Gallery	OP*	38,000	38,000	38,000	OD $910
25	Corporeal Mime Soc.	PR	0	10,000	0
26	Crafts Association of B.C.	PR	0	4,000	0
27	Cultural Metaphors (Pangaea Arts Society)	PR	2,000	10,000	-
28	Current Sound Opera(tions) Society	PR	0	3,000	-
29	DanceArts Vancouver	OP*	27,000	30,000	27,000
30	Dancing on the Edge Festival	OP	5,500	8,000	5,500	BAX $3,800
31	Danstabat Performance Soc.	PR	4,500	6,000	4,500
32	D.C. Dancecorps Soc.	PR*	8,000	10,000	8,000
33	Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Garden Soc. of Van.	PR	1,500	2,500	1,500	VS
34	Dragon Boat Festival	OP**	5,000	20,000	7,500
35	Early Music Vancouver	OP*	15,000	16,000	14,000	BAX $7,000; VS
36	EDAM Performing Arts Soc.	OP*	9,000	10,000	8,000
37	Elektra Women's Choir	PR	2,000	2,000	1,500
38	Evergreen Theatre Soc.	PR	0	5,000	0
39	Federation of B.C. Writers	OP	5,000	8,000	5,000
40	Fend Players Soc.	PR	0	5,000	-
41	Firehall Theatre Soc.	OP*	33,000	50,000	30,000	CCI $5,000; VS
42	Fool's Soc. (O.H. Lettuce B. Fools of Soc.)	PR	0	1,000	-
43	FRINGE Festival	OP*	32,000	35,000	32,000
44	Full Circle: First Nations Performance Soc.	PR	0	5,000	-
45	Goh Ballet	PR	3,000	10,000	0	BAX $3,800
46	Gr. Van. Historical Performance Soc. of B.C.	PR	0	5,000	-
47	Green Thumb Theatre	OP*	30,000	30,000	29,000
48	Grinning Dragon Theatre Company Soc.	PR	2,000	7,500	2,000
49	Grunt Gallery - Visible Arts Soc.	OP	8,500	8,500	7,500
50	Hard Rubber New Music Soc.	PR	1,500	3,000	1,500
51	Headlines Theatre (Theatre for Living Soc.)	OP*	11,500	13,000	11,500
52	Holy Body Tattoo Soc.	OP	7,000	10,000	5,000

Intertribal PowWow Committee

1,500

55	Joe Ink Performance Soc.	PR	5,000	6,000	-
56	JumpStart Performance Soc.	PR	6,000	10,000	0
57	Karen Jamieson Dance Soc.	OP*	17,000	19,000	17,000
58	Katari Taiko Drum Group	OP	3,000	3,000	2,500
59	Katherine Labelle Dance Soc.	PR	0	3,500	-
60	Kinesis Dance Society	PR	0	5,000	0
61	Kokoro Dance Theatre Soc.	OP*	10,000	11,500	9,500	CCI $4,000
63	Little Chamber Music Series That Could Soc.	PR	1,500	3,000	1,000
64	Lola MacLaughlin Dance Soc.	OP	5,500	6,000	5,500
65	MainDance Projects Soc.	OP	3,500	5,000	3,500
66	Malaspina Printmakers Soc.	OP	4,000	5,000	4,000
67	Mascall Dance Soc.	OP	7,500	10,000	7,500
68	Mazl-Tov Musical Heritage Soc.	PR	0	1,500	-
69	Modern Baroque Opera Soc.	PR	3,000	4,000	2,000
70	Mortal Coil Performance Soc.	PR	0	3,000	0
71	Moving Images Distribution Soc.	OP*	9,000	10,000	9,000
72	MTW Musical Theatreworks of Canada Soc.	PR	2,000	3,000	0
73	Music in the Morning Concert Soc.	OP	6,500	10,000	6,500	OD $1,363
74	Native Daughters of B.C., Post No. 1	OP	3,500	4,500	3,500	VS
75	New Orchestra Workshop Soc.	OP	2,500	3,500	2,500
76	Norman Rothstein Theatre (Westside Theatre Society)	PR	4,000	6,000	4,000	CAP $1,200; VS
77	Opera Breve Vancouver (Bella Opera Breve Van. Soc.)	PR	0	3,965	-
78	Or Gallery Soc.	OP*	9,000	10,000	8,000
79	Pacific Baroque Orchestra Soc.	PR	2,500	5,000	2,500
80	Pacific Cinematheque Pacifique	OP*	19,500	22,000	18,000	VS
81	Pacific Theatre	PR	1,000	2,500	1,000	VS
82	Paula Ross Dance Soc.	PR	0	5,000	-

83	Pink Ink Theatre Productions	OP*	9,000	12,000	9,000
84	Pitt Gallery (Unit/Pitt)	OP	8,000	10,000	8,000

85	Playwrights' Theatre Centre	OP*	15,000	15,000	15,000
86	Powell Street Festival Soc.	OP*	9,000	12,000	9,000	OD $910; VS
87	Public Dreams Soc.	OP*	12,500	15,000	10,000	VS
88	Ruby Slippers Productions Soc.	OP	6,500	10,000	6,500
89	Rumble Productions Soc.	OP	6,500	7,500	6,500	OD $750
90	Satellite Video Exchange Soc.	OP*	15,500	16,000	14,000	OD $3,182
91	Savage Media Soc.	PR	0	4,000	-
92	Seniors' Research Group of Chinese Opera and Music	PR	1,000	1,000	1,000
93	Standing Wave	PR	1,000	1,500	0
95	Théâtre la Seizième	OP	6,000	7,000	6,000	OD $750
96	Theatre M.O.M.	PR	4,000	4,500	0	OD $4,000
97	Theatre Terrific Soc.	OP**	4,000	8,500	7,500	VS
98	Touchstone Theatre Soc.	OP*	20,000	22,000	17,000
99	Trial and Eros Productions Soc.	PR	1,000	3,000	-
100	Uzume Taiko Drum Group Soc.	OP	7,000	7,000	5,000
101	Van. Aboriginal Friendship Centre Soc.	PR	0	2,000	1,500
102	Van. Access Artist Run Centre	PR	2,000	2,000	-
103	Van. Ballet Soc.	OP	3,000	5,000	4,500	VS
104	Van. Cantata Soc.	OP*	14,000	15,000	14,000	BAX $7,000; GR $12,250; OD $1,818
105	Van. Children's Choir	PR	0	2,500	-
106	Van. Community Gamelan Soc.	PR	1,000	1,500	1,000
107	Van. Co-operative Radio	OP*	8,000	8,000	8,000	CAP $1,300
108	Van. Cultural Alliance	OP*	39,000	40,000	34,000	OD $1,363; VS
109	Van. Dance Centre Soc.	OP*	15,000	20,000	15,000
110	Van. East Cultural Centre	OP*	67,000	69,000	65,000	VS
111	Van. Folk Music Festival Soc.	OP**	55,000	55,500	55,000	VS

112	Van. Intl. Comedy Festival Soc.	OP	7,500	10,000	7,500
113	Van. Intl. Film Festival Soc.	OP*	17,500	25,000	17,500
114	Van. Intl. Writer's Festival Soc.	OP*	20,000	20,000	20,000	CCI $4,500; OD $910

116

Van. New Music Soc.

OP*

23,000

25,000

20,000

OD $450

117	Van. Opera Association	OP	14,000	25,000	5,000	GR $268,500
118	Van. Philharmonic Soc.	PR	0	5,000	-
119	Van. Pro Musica Soc.	PR	1,500	3,000	1,000
120	Van. Professional Theatre Alliance	OP	2,500	5,000	2,500
121	Van. Society of Storytelling	OP	5,500	8,000	5,500
122	Van. Symphony Soc.	OP*	46,000	60,000	46,000	FIN $100,000; GR $553,350
123	Van. Youth Symphony Orchestra	OP	0	5,000	3,500
124	Van. Youth Theatre Society	OP	10,000	12,000	10,000
125	Vetta Chamber Music and Recital Soc.	OP	2,500	3,000	2,000
126	VIEW, The Performing Arts Soc.	OP*	21,000	24,000	21,000
127	Waterfront Theatre Soc.	OP*	13,500	14,000	13,500
128	Western Front Soc.	OP*	17,500	19,000	17,500	CCI $6,000
129	Western Gold Theatre Soc.	PR	3,000	5,000	0
130	Wild Excursions Productions Soc.	PR	5,000	5,000	4,000
	Totals		$1,342,900	$1,687,515	$1,272,900

* Conditional Grants:

Dragon Boat Festival

A reduced grant is recommended SUBJECT TO the provision of a performer's list and fee schedule by May 29,1998.

Theatre Terrific Soc.

A reduced grant to assist with this year's activities is recommended, SUBJECT TO confirmation of the company's Vancouver production and submission of a plan to fill artistic and management vacancies.

Van. Folk Music Festival Soc.

Continued funding is recommended as follows: 45% SUBJECT TO confirmation of the creditors' acceptance of the debt reduction plan before April 15, 1998; 45% SUBJECT TO receipt of the 1997 audited financial statements before May 31, 1998; & 10% SUBJECT TO confirmation of payment to the 1998 performers before August 15, 1998.

Note: The numbers in the left column correspond to the order in which the front pages of the applications are packaged.

* Indicates the organization has received an Advance Grant in 1998. ** Conditional Grant (see page 6)

BAX = Baxter, CAP = Capital, CCI = Cross-Cultural Initiatives, FIN = Finance Other, GR = Grants Equal to Rent, OD = Organizational Development, OP = Operating, PR = Project, SUP = Supplemental, VS = Venue support (bonused amenity, rental subsidy, park use, or property tax exemption)

Appendix B

City of Vancouver Cultural Grants 1998

Requests for Reconsideration

Operating and Project Applications, Alphabetical List

(Column 1) (Column 2) (Column 3) (Column 4)

Organization Name Grant 1998 1998 1997 1997

Type Recomm. Request Grant Other Civic Support

India Music Soc.

8,000

4,500

BAX $1,900

Kootenay School of Writing Soc.

4,000

3,000

Theatre in the Raw Soc.

1,225

115

Van. Moving Theatre

2,000

4,000

3,500

131

Yorick Theatre Soc.

8,000

Totals $2,000 $25,225 $11,000

Note: The numbers in the left column correspond to the order in which the front pages of the applications are packaged.

BAX = Baxter, OP = Operating, PR = Project

Appendix C

City of Vancouver
Operating & Project Grants
Summary by Activity


	1998 Grant Recommendations			1997 Grants

	No. of	Grant	% of Total	No. of	Grant	% of Total
Type of Activity	Groups	$	Grant $	Groups	$	Grant $


Festivals & Special Events	15	318,400	23.7%	17	321,400	24.5%
Theatre	21	250,000	18.6%	22	248,000	18.9%
Dance	18	213,500	15.9%	14	196,500	15.0%
Music	21	160,500	11.9%	22	148,500	11.3%
Cultural Facilities	4	117,500	8.7%	4	112,500	8.6%
Visual & Exhibition	9	106,000	7.9%	10	110,000	8.4%
Media Arts	5	67,000	5.0%	5	64,000	4.9%
Multidisciplinary	5	52,000	3.9%	5	50,000	3.8%
Service	3	47,500	3.5%	3	44,500	3.4%
Literary Arts	2	8,500	0.6%	4	12,500	1.0%
Cultural Centre	2	4,000	0.3%	2	4,000	0.3%


TOTAL	105	1,344,900	100.0%	108	1,311,900	100.0%

Note: These grants do not reflect the City's overall spending on arts and culture.

Civic support is also provided through other grant and subsidy programs. * * * * *

Comments or questions? You can send us email.

TO:	Vancouver City Council
FROM:	Director, Office of Cultural Affairs
SUBJECT:	1998 Cultural Grants: Operating & Project Grant Allocations