Agenda Index City of Vancouver

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORT

TO: Standing Committee on City Services & Budgets
FROM: Director, Office of Cultural Affairs
SUBJECT: Reconsideration of 1998 Cultural Grant Recommendations
 

RECOMMENDATION

GENERAL MANAGER'S COMMENTS

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 properly assessed or understood.

Approval of grant recommendations requires eight affirmative votes.

PURPOSE

This report contains the results of the staff reconsideration of five Cultural grant requests, as requested by grant applicants. It proposes changes to one original staff recommendation.

BACKGROUND

In November 1994, Council approved a new 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);

… grants that are not in dispute can be considered by Council earlier than those being reconsidered; and

… some portion of the grants budget is set aside to allow for funding of new or increased grants arising from the reconsideration process.

In a letter dated February 24, 1998, all Operating and Project grant applicants were advised of staff recommendations, along with reasons for recommended reductions, or no grants. Five organizations requested reconsideration, as listed in Table 1.

On March 24, 1998, Council approved staff recommendations for all Operating and Project grant applications not being reconsidered. The approval left no balance in the Operating Grants budget and a balance of $13,715 the Project Grants budget.

DISCUSSION

After applicants for reconsideration provided written information to support their requests, staff conducted a second review of each request. Discussions were held with all the applicants, and a staff committee reviewed the original applications, supporting materials, and the information submitted with the reconsideration requests. This report presents the results of this review process.

Table 1 lists each applicant's grant request and current staff recommendations, including any conditions. Written submissions from applicants requesting reconsideration, together with staff responses and recommendations are provided in Appendix A.

Table 1

1998 Requests for Reconsideration

* Subject to receipt and satisfactory review of IMS's 1997 audited financial statement.

CONCLUSION

Of the five applicants requesting reconsideration this year, only Vancouver Moving Theatre was originally recommended for a grant ($2,000 in the Project Grant category). Following the reconsideration process, staff are proposing a change in one of these initial recommendations: an Operating grant of $3,000 to India Music Society (IMS). The source of funds for the grant to IMS would be $3,000 transferred from the unallocated balance in Project Grants to Operating Grants. Approval of the recommendations in this report would leave an unallocated balance of $8,715 in the Project category and no unallocated balance in Operating.

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