HomeMy WebLinkAboutItem 8.1 Art Space Grant
STAFF REPORT
CITY COUNCIL
DATE:July 19, 2016
TO:
Honorable Mayor and City Councilmembers
FROM:
Christopher L. Foss, City Manager
SUBJECT:
Arts Space Grant Pilot Program Proposal
Prepared by: Tegan McLane, Cultural Arts & Heritage Manager
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY:
The City Council will consider a Staff proposal for an Arts Space Grant pilot program,
under which the City Council would allocate use of a portion of the City’s time at Dublin
High School Center for the Performing Arts and Education to nonprofit arts groups.
Selected City-owned facilities are also included in the pilot program. Staff presented
this pilot program to the Heritage and Cultural Arts Commission on June 9, 2016 and
the Commission is recommending the program as proposed.
STAFF RECOMMENDATION:
Staff recommends that the City Council approve the Arts Space Grant pilot program.
FINANCIAL IMPACT:
Costs for the Arts Space Grant pilot program have been included in the Fiscal Year
2016-17 Parks and Community Services/Cultural Arts Operating Budget. Staff estimates
administrative costs to be minimal, approximately $2,600 annually. Direct costs for
facility attendants could vary, depending on the dates and facilities for which space
granted. Time granted at Dublin High School Center for the Performing Arts and
Education incurs no direct cost to the City. Time granted at City-owned facilities could
incur direct costs of facility attendants and potentially lost revenue. Direct costs will be
carefully tracked during the pilot program to provide City Council with complete
information when it evaluates the pilot program.
DESCRIPTION:
At its March 1, 2016, meeting, the City Council approved an Agreement between the
City of Dublin and the Dublin Unified School District for Use of Theatre Facilities at
Dublin High School Center for the Performing Arts and Education, which allows for the
City to grant use of some of its allocated theatre time to nonprofit arts groups. Staff was
directed to develop a competitive grant program to allow arts organizations to apply to
the City for time at that facility.
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The proposal for an Arts Space Grant pilot program was presented to Heritage and
Cultural Arts Commission at its June 9, 2016, meeting and unanimously recommended
its approval, with one requested modification - that Staff solicit feedback from local arts
community at the conclusion of the pilot program to determine if the program is
adequately meeting the needs of the arts community. Specifically, some Commissioners
expressed concerns that the proposed eligibility requirements and grant procedures are
'too bureaucratic' and place undue burden on the arts groups.
Should the City Council approve the pilot program, Staff is prepared to implement the
pilot program this summer and award Arts Space Grants for the period November 1,
2016-June 30, 2017. At conclusion of the pilot program, Staff will present a final report
to the Heritage and Cultural Arts Commission. At the Commission's specific request,
this final report will include broad feedback from the arts community, including not only
feedback from those organizations awarded space under the pilot program, but also any
received from those organizations that applied but were not awarded space and those
who were notified of the opportunity and chose not to apply. The Commission will
receive the report and may recommend to City Council changes in any of the following
areas: Eligibility Requirements, Available Facilities, Grant Procedures and Grant
Priorities.
Arts Space Grant Summary
Under the proposed Arts Space Grant pilot program, non-profit arts organizations will be
invited to apply to the City of Dublin for space grants to use selected City of Dublin
facilities and Dublin High School Center for the Performing Arts and Education at no
charge. The City will promote the award recipients’ programs through normal City
channels on a space available basis. Arts space will be awarded through a formal,
competitive grant program, with Heritage and Culture Arts Commission reviewing
applications and making recommendations to City Council, for their approval of the
awards. Organizations receiving space grants will be required to submit a formal report
at the completion of their space use, documenting participation - ticket sales, photos,
etc. The organization will also address how well the program met the
Objective/Outcome/Measures identified in their application.
Eligibility Requirements
Staff is recommending the Arts Space Grant pilot program be open to organizations that
meet the following criteria:
· 501c3 nonprofit organization serving City of Dublin residents, or a smaller arts
club operating under the fiscal sponsorship of a 501c3. Applicant must provide
proof of nonprofit status or letter acknowledging fiscal sponsorship and copy of
fiscal sponsor’s nonprofit status.
· Applicant need not be based in Dublin.
· Applicant must obtain special event or general liability insurance, just as would
be required of any other renter of City-owned or District-owned property.
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· Applicant must obtain City of Dublin business license.
· Applicant must attend mandatory informational meeting and the Heritage and
Cultural Arts meeting at which the grants are considered (Applicant could be
asked to make a short presentation).
· For groups requesting space for active (participatory) programs, i.e. rehearsals or
workshops, Staff recommends the group be required to guarantee at least 51%
of the participant slots for Dublin residents or that Dublin residents be given some
sort of discount or priority registration.
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· For groups requesting space for passive (viewed) programs i.e. performances or
exhibits, Staff recommends there be no requirement that a certain percentage of
the audience be Dublin residents, as that is difficult to measure and prove.
However, if the groups have Dublin residents as performers or are showing the
works of Dublin artists, that should be noted and those groups be given priority.
Available Spaces
For the pilot program, Staff recommends using only facilities that have a history of arts
related programming and limiting the number of hours to be granted, so as not to
severely impact the facilities’ normal rental availability or budgeted rental revenue.
The facilities Staff recommends including in the pilot are:
· Dublin High School Center for Performing Arts and Education - Fully equipped
theatrical venue. Suitable for all theater, dance, music productions, as well as
film or lectures. Seats 506. Includes technical staff. Up to 10, eight-hour days
available to be granted.
· Heritage Sunday School Barn - Black Box theater. Suitable for very small theater,
dance, acoustic music productions, lectures, non-messy workshops. Seats 110
for performance, 50 for workshops. No technical staff included. Up to 80 hours
available to be granted.
· Heritage Old St. Raymond Church - Suitable for small acoustic music
productions, lectures, film, non-messy workshops, participatory music programs.
Seats 84. No technical staff included. Up to 80 hours available to be granted.
· Heritage Little Classroom - Suitable for small art exhibit installations to hang for
no more than two weeks. No technical staff included. Up to two weeks available
to be granted.
· Shannon Center - Ambrose Hall - Banquet hall with portable stage available.
Suitable for theater, music productions, art exhibits, film, lectures, non-messy
workshops, participatory dance events. Seats up to 300 for performance, 150 for
workshop. No technical staff included. Up to 80 hours available to be granted.
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· Dublin Senior Center Ballroom - Banquet hall with small raised stage. Suitable for
music productions, art exhibits, film, lectures, non-messy workshops,
participatory dance events. Seats up to 248 for performance, 150 for workshops.
No technical staff included. Up to 80 hours available to be granted.
· Dublin Senior Center Art Classrooms - Suitable for messy and non-messy
workshops. Seats up to 30. No technical staff included. Up to 80 hours available
to be granted.
· Dublin Library Community Room - Suitable for art exhibit events, lectures, film,
non-messy workshops, participatory music events. Seats up to 120 for assembly,
50 for workshops. No technical staff included. Up to 80 hours available to be
granted.
· Dublin City Hall Lobby - Suitable for small art exhibit installations (light weight,
two dimensional, non-framed pieces only). Up to two weeks available to be
granted.
Grant Procedures
The Arts Space Grant application will be designed similar in format to the Community
Grant applications, in that applicants will be required to pick Objectives, Outcomes, and
Indicators (Measures) from a list of those acceptable to the City. For the Arts Space
Grant Pilot Program, the Objectives/Outcomes will be derived from the Public Art
Master plan. Applicants will also be required to demonstrate how the program benefits
Dublin residents by meeting the City’s Mission, Vision and Values. Applicants will also
choose from a list of qualitative measures acceptable to the City which ones they will
use to measure the success of their program.
Applications will be reviewed by Staff for completeness and availability of the
facility/date/times requested. Staff will place a tentative hold on facility/date/time. If the
applicant’s first choice facility/date/time is not available, Staff will propose alternative
facilities or dates/times to the organization prior to meeting. Should the organization
wish to proceed with an alternate request, Staff will place a hold on the new time and
note the change in the application. If multiple organizations request the same space,
Staff will hold the requested date and contact each to determine possible alternate
facilities/dates/times.
Heritage and Cultural Arts Commission will consider all eligible applications, rank
applications and recommend space grants up to the pre-determined hours limit. If
multiple organizations request the same space, the award shall go to the applicant
whose proposal was ranked higher. Organizations that rank highly but do not receive
their first choice can be offered their second choice, if space is available.
Staff recommends organizations be granted space for one program only, and that hours
granted be limited to no more than 40 hours per organization, or one two-week display
period during the facility’s normal open hours. Staff further recommends, if the pilot
program is successful and the Arts Space Grant program continues, organizations be
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required to wait one full year before applying again. This will encourage new
organizations to apply and foster diversity of arts within the City.
Organizations granted space under the program will be required to submit a brief report
following their program and report on the measures they selected in their application.
Grant Priorities
Staff recommends establishing grant priorities to ensure that the recipients of free space
are chosen in a deliberate and thoughtful way, and the free space grants support the
City’s overall arts goals. Staff recommends the following be priorities:
· Program supports Dublin’s arts goals as identified in Public Art Master Plan.
· Program has the potential to provide a high number of participant hours to Dublin
residents. Participant hours would be measured by the estimated of Dublin
residents multiplied by the number of hours they would be involved at the facility.
· Program is affordable for Dublin residents.
· Program has broad community support, as evidenced by attendance, donations,
etc.
· Program is unique to Dublin, the Tri-Valley or the Bay Area.
· Applicant organization has demonstrated its professionalism and its ability to
produce the proposed program.
· Applicant organizations that have a past history of partnerships with City of
Dublin have a good track record for fulfilling their obligations to the City.
· Viewed as a whole, the grant awards for the year represent a variety of art forms
and/or cultures.
NOTICING REQUIREMENTS/PUBLIC OUTREACH:
An email notice of this staff report item was sent to arts organizations and individuals
who have applied to be listed in the City of Dublin’s Arts Database.
ATTACHMENTS:
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