|
CITY OF VANCOUVER ADMINISTRATIVE REPORT |
Date: |
July 30, 2003 | |
Author: |
Karen Hasselfelt | |
Phone No.: |
604-871-6045 | |
RTS No.: |
03546 | |
CC File No.: |
2051 | |
Meeting Date: |
September 11, 2003 |
TO: |
Standing Committee on City Services and Budgets |
FROM: |
Director, Office of Cultural Affairs |
SUBJECT: |
Reconsideration of 2003 Cultural Grant Recommendations |
RECOMMENDATION
A. THAT Council not approve a Project Grant to Absolut Theatre Company, in accordance with the Director of Cultural Affairs' original recommendation; and
B. THAT Council not approve a Project Grant to the Eastside Culture Crawl Society, in accordance with the Director of Cultural Affairs' original recommendation.
GENERAL MANAGER'S COMMENTS
The General Manager of Community Services presents the foregoing for Council's CONSIDERATION.
COUNCIL POLICY
On November 22, 1994, City Council established the policy that cultural grant recommendations will be reconsidered only if the reconsideration requests are based on one or both of the following premises: (1) eligibility criteria have not been properly applied; or (2) the applicant's financial situation has not been accurately assessed.
Approval of grant recommendations requires eight affirmative votes.
PURPOSE
This report relays the results of staff's reconsideration of two Cultural grant applications from the second Project Grants deadline in June as requested by grant applicants, and makes recommendations based on the outcome of this process.
BACKGROUND
In November 1994, Council approved a grant reconsideration process for Community Services and Cultural grants with the following features:
· specified grounds for reconsideration (referred to in Council Policy, above) must be identified and explained;
· staff's reasons for initial recommendations, applicants' reasons for seeking reconsideration, and staff's responses, are presented in writing (see Appendix A); and
· grants that are not in dispute can be considered by Council earlier than those being reconsidered.
The process is not intended to revisit questions of artistic merit, organizational competence or any number of other evaluation criteria. In a letter dated June 30, 2003, all Project grant applicants were advised of staff recommendations, along with reasons for recommended reductions or no grants. Two organizations requested reconsideration, as follows:
|
Original Request |
Orig. Recomm. |
Absolut Theatre (under auspices of Theatre Terrific) |
$5,200 |
$0 |
Eastside Culture Crawl: |
$ 6,500 |
$0 |
On March 25, 2003, Council approved Operating and Project grants totaling $1,390,900, leaving a balance of $40,000 for the second Project grant deadline in June. In view of the range and quality of the applications received in this second Project grant round, on July 22, 2003 Council approved a transfer of an additional $8,000 from the Organizational Development to the Projects Grants component of the 2003 Cultural Grants budget and approved staff recommendations for the Project Grant applications totalling $48,000 for the 20 Project Grant applications not involved in the reconsideration process. The approval of these grants has left no unallocated balance in the 2003 Project grants budget.
DISCUSSION
After the two applicants for reconsideration provided written information to support their requests, staff conducted a second review of each request. Discussions were held with representatives from both organizations, and a staff committee reviewed the original applications, supporting materials, and the information submitted with the reconsideration requests. Written submissions from applicants requesting reconsideration, together with staff responses are provided in Appendix A.
FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS
This is the last round of Project grants for 2003 and there is no unallocated balance remaining in the Project Grant category of the 2003 Cultural Grants budget. The source funds for any additional grants approved by Council would be Contingency Reserve.
CONCLUSION
After a second review of the two applications for reconsideration, staff have concluded that since there are no grounds for reconsidering Absolut Theatre and that the Eastside Culture Crawl does not meet all the eligibility requirements for a Project grant, the original recommendations for no grants should remain unchanged.
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