SUPPORTS ITEM NO. 5
CS&B COMMITTEE AGENDA
MARCH 13, 1997
ADMINISTRATIVE REPORT
Date: February 26, 1997
CC File No. 2052-1
TO: Standing Committee on City Services and Budgets
FROM: Director of Cultural Affairs
SUBJECT: 1997 Cultural Grants Budget Ceiling
RECOMMENDATION
THAT Council approve a 1997 Cultural Grants budget of
$2,958,980 as outlined in summary Table II.
GENERAL MANAGER'S COMMENTS
The General Manager of Community Services RECOMMENDS approval of the
foregoing.
COUNCIL POLICY
Council established the annual civic grants programs in March 1978.
Budget ceilings for the Cultural Grants program are approved annually.
On Feb. 20, 1997, Council approved a reduction of $180,000 in support
to large cultural organizations and major exhibiting organizations in
the Cultural Grants and Other Grants categories.
PURPOSE
In the context of the Director of Finance's cover report, the purpose of
this report is to establish a budget ceiling for the 1997 Cultural
Grants program, which includes Operating, Project, and Incentive grants,
as well as Grants Equal to Rent.
BACKGROUND
The City's four categories of Cultural Grants play an important role in
helping to sustain and develop a creative and accessible arts sector in
our community. Operating, Project and Grants Equal to Rent grants
contribute to the creation, production, presentation and distribution of
artists' work. Incentive grants assist arts groups to undertake the
organizational development and audience outreach that is key to their
survival, and support valuable cross-cultural activities.
For 1997, 135 applications totalling $1,846,550 have been received in
the Project and Operating categories. Grants Equal to Theatre Rent and
Incentive Grants are reviewed later in the year. Table I, following,
shows how these requests compare with those in the past three years.
TABLE I
Operating and Project Grant Applications
1995 1996 1997
Applications:
Orgs. funded previous year 106 109 106
Return orgs. not funded prev. 10 15 8
New applicants 34 19 21
Total 150 143 135
Orgs.that haven't returned:
Orgs. funded in previous year 8 10 15
Orgs. not funded in prev. year 12 16 15
Total 20 26 30
DISCUSSION
1997 Budget Ceiling
For 1996 Council approved a Cultural Grants budget totalling $2,979,690
in all four categories, adjusted to account for the transfer of Science
World's $80,000 grant to the Other Grants budget, as indicated in the
Director of Finance s cover report.
On Feb. 20, 1997, Council approved the reduction of grants to the City's
major cultural and exhibiting organizations by $180,000. The Directors
of Finance and Cultural Affairs are recommending that this reduction be
proportionally distributed among the ten major cultural organizations
that get the highest levels of civic support (see Appendix A). On this
basis, the decreases to the five organizations in the Other Grants
budget(including Science World) amount to $130,000. The decreases to
the organizations in the Cultural Grants budget amount to $50,000,
leaving $2,929,690 as the base level budget for 1997 Cultural Grants,
prior to any adjustment for inflation.
Given that the Director of Finance advises that the 1997 budget figures
are to include a 1% adjustment for inflation, staff are submitting a
1997 Cultural Grants budget ceiling of $2,958,980. The recommended
decreases and their allocation between the two relevant categories
(Operating and Grants Equal to Rent) are based on the proportion of City
support to the large organizations slated
for reductions. Additional adjustments in the distribution of funds
among the four categories are based on priorities and anticipated needs,
as described later in this report. A summary of the recommended
allocations among categories is provided in Table II, following.
TABLE II
1997 Cultural Grants Budget
Proportional Recommended 1997
1996 Budget Decrease ** with 1% Increase
Operating $1,281,885 $7,600 $1,277,360
Project 55,000 0 65,000
Incentive 79,000 0 80,000
Grants=Rent 1,563,805 $42,400 1,536,620
TOTAL $2,979,690* $50,000 $2,958,980
* Adjusted from $3,059,690 to reflect the transfer of Science
World ($80,000 ) to Other Grants.
** Amount of proportional decrease in funding to major
organizations by category.
Operating and Project Grants
In addition to the decrease based on proportional cuts in the Operating
category, staff are recommending a change in the distribution of funds
between the Operating and Project grants budget allocations. The
recommendation is for an increase in Projects, and a decrease in
Operating Grants, to reflect the fact that more arts groups are
operating on a project by project basis, including some currently in the
Operating category that may be recommended for transfers to Projects.
Council will also note that due to the budget review and the delay in
finalizing the Cultural Grants budget ceiling, staff are not
recommending advance instalments for Operating grant recipients this
year.
Grants Equal to Rent
Grants Equal to Rent are provided to established arts organizations that
regularly use one of the three Civic Theatres. Following a staff
review, Council approved a new process for Grants Equal to Rent on July
27, 1995, providing for seasonally based grants considered in the Spring
of each year. The budget ceiling for Grants Equal to Rent, however,
continues to be set at the same time as the rest of the Cultural Grants
budget.
Proportional cuts to the four major organizations funded through rental
grants amount to $42,400, bringing the budget in this category, after a
1% inflationary increase, to $1,536,620 (this includes the $100,000
grant to the VSO to cover the rental costs of its office space in the
Orpheum).
Incentive Grants
In 1996, Council approved a budget of $79,000 in the Incentives
category. For 1997, staff recommend a budget of $80,000, representing
an increase of just over 1%, with $30,000 allocated to Organizational
Development and $50,000 to Cross-Cultural Initiatives.
Organizational Development Fund:
Organizational development and renewal in the cultural sector has become
increasingly important, especially given budget cutbacks, the changing
demographics of our community, and increased competition for audiences.
The Organizational Development component of the Cultural Grants budget
helps organizations upgrade staff skills, obtain expertise needed to
address specific operational problems, and undertake long-range
planning and audience development initiatives.
In recent years, at least half of the funds in Organizational
Development have been allocated to the Partners in Organizational
Development program, which has been more than matched by funds from
Vancouver Foundation and, most recently, the Department of Canadian
Heritage. Staff anticipate that these matching funds will again be
available, and will report back to Council when they are confirmed.
Cross-Cultural Initiatives Fund:
The Cross-Cultural Initiatives Program supports projects that help
increase the understanding between diverse cultural groups, assisting
artists working with community groups, encouraging intercultural
outreach, and facilitating a range of other cross- cultural initiatives.
This year, staff are engaged in discussions with senior funding agencies
that may result in an interagency program with matching funds for some
projects in this category. Staff will report to Council, with
recommendations regarding the City's possible involvement. (If the
program is confirmed.)
CONCLUSION
While the budget presented in this report provides for proportional cuts
to cultural organizations receiving the highest levels of civic support,
staff believe that changes in the City's funding to other organizations
are also desirable to maximize the effectiveness of the City's funding.
Staff are currently reviewing Operating and Project grant applications,
and expect to present Council with recommendations for reductions,
increases, transfers between categories, and fewer grants overall than
last year.
* * * * *
APPENDIX A
(from the Director of Finance s Cover Report)
Allocation of the $180,000 budget reduction to the top 10 cultural and exhibiting organizations in the Other and Cultural
Grant categories, equal to a 3% cut in civic support to each.
1996 1996 Basis to Reduction Reduction
Basic Other City Allocate to Other to Cultural
Grant Costs Reduction Grants Grants
Organizations $ $ $ $
Vancouver Art Gallery 1,865,400 149,000 2,014,400 61,100
Vancouver Symphony Society 732,385 0 732,385 22,200
Vancouver Museum Commission 655,900 376,200 1,032,100 31,300
Pacific Space Centre Society 460,600 264,200 724,800 22,000
Vancouver Playhouse Theatre Co. 370,405 0 370,405 11,300
Vancouver Opera Association 265,825 0 265,825 8,100
Vancouver Maritime Museum Soc. 276,000 158,300 434,300 13,200
Ballet B.C. 158,625 158,625 4,800
Children s Festival (CIAYA) 120,000 0 120,000 3,600
Science World (ASTC) 80,000 0 80,000 2,400
4,985,140 947,700 5,932,840 130,000 50,000