Item 06 - In Support of Independent Artists + Creative Workers — Recommendations for City of Austin Funding Guidelines (1).pdf — original pdf

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IN SUPPORT OF INDEPENDENT ARTISTS + CREATIVE WORKERS — RECOMMENDATIONS FOR THE CITY OF AUSTIN’S ARTS & CULTURE (ACME / CREATIVE RESET) FUNDING GUIDELINES WHAT IS HAPPENING? The City of Austin’s ACME is conducting a three-week community engagement process through June 5 around upcoming changes to its funding programs, titled The Creative Reset: https://www.austintexas.gov/page/creative-reset WHAT IS ACME? The City of Austin’s Office of Arts, Culture, Music, and Entertainment (ACME) was established in 2024 to streamline the city's cultural efforts into one hub, combining all resources for cultural arts, public arts, heritage centers, heritage tourism, music, and special events. ACME’s goals are to “enhance coordination, improve services, and create synergistic opportunities to sustain and develop Austin’s rich creative ecosystem and places, ensuring Austin remains a global destination for creative experiences while honoring the city’s rich heritage.” WHAT CULTURAL ARTS FUNDING OPTIONS ARE UNDER REVIEW THROUGH “THE CREATIVE RESET?” Funding programs’ guidelines, policies and operating structures for the following City of Austin grants are currently under review: ● Nexus Grant Program ($5,000 grants to individual artists) ● Elevate Grant Program (up to $80,000 grants to individual artists and arts organizations) ● Thrive Grant Program (up to $150,000 grants to arts organizations) ● Austin Live Music Fund ● Creative Space Assistance Program ● Heritage Preservation Grant ● Art in Public Places (AIPP) Ordinance and Program Three of these programs (the Nexus Grant Program, Elevate Grant Program and Thrive Grant Program) are two years old and were reintroduced after a three-year community engagement process in 2024. ———————————————————————————————————————————— WHY IS IT IMPORTANT FOR FUTURE ACME PROGRAMS TO CONTINUE SUPPORTING INDEPENDENT ARTISTS AND CREATIVE WORKERS, AS WELL AS ARTS ORGANIZATIONS? Peer models and case studies indicate that independent artists, creatives and cultural workers are vital stakeholders in the shared memories and traditions that make our communities places to visit and populate. The City’s current funding strategies promote cultural tourism, which rely on the continued availability of cultural events, projects and organizations that champion continued and sustained local visitorship, promote community memory-building & contribute to organic storytelling around the City of Austin and its residents. As such, when it comes to the culture of our communities, independent artists, creatives and cultural workers are vital stakeholders. Funding guidelines must include these stakeholders with equal weight and consideration as creative businesses, organizations and institutions. Future funding programs should also continue to provide a range of funding opportunities that meet the needs of a wide range of cultural stakeholders, including independent artists and creatives and cultural workers—because Austin has a long and well-documented creative history. As the city rapidly grows, centering Austin’s diverse creative communities in cultural planning continues to drive belonging, economic growth and long-lasting culture. This growth, however, has posed many well-documented questions and barriers for cross-community traditions, arts access, ongoing public engagement in culture and impactful creative empowerment in Austin’s built environment. In response to these challenges and changing priorities, future funding programs should consider surveyed community need, effective & efficient government, as well as the highest and best use of available funds: 1. ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS — City of Austin’s ACME funding programs are vital for creative workforce development and ongoing economic development. As such, The City of Austin’s funding programs must support opportunities for the emergence of hyperlocal artist business and creative businesses that support cultural tourism. a. We recommend that fiscal sponsorship for independent artists, creatives, cultural workers b. and creative businesses without 501c3 status is an optional requirement. If 501c3 status and fiscal sponsorship is required of eligible applicants, fiscal sponsors need to adhere to an annual approval process, as well as a minimum set of administrative support and capacity-building requirements, with biennial audits and oversight from City staff, as this would mandate that 10% of all City funds go to a handful of organizations offering fiscal sponsorship. 2. LOCAL VISITORSHIP AND CULTURAL TOURISM CONSIDERATIONS — The City of Austin’s ACME Funding Programs should continue to promote local visitorship and cultural tourism, as well as a meet industry best practices and standards. This includes: a. Ensuring grant questions consider the following for an applicant’s proposed project, in alignment with state, national and global grant-making best practices that exist to promote, ensure and guarantee quality artistic production, as well as artistic merit: i. Organizational / Artist Mission Statement & Goals ii. Proposed Project Goals, Frameworks and Values In Alignment with Grant Priorities Demonstration of Proposed Project Programming, Impact and Outcomes Creative Leadership & Personnel Past Project Histories Administration Processes & Budgeting Demonstration of Constituents Served and Involvement of Constituent Voice in Decision-Making iii. iv. v. vi. vii. b. Providing funding options at different contract values, ranging from $5,000 to $10,000, $30,000 to $80,000 and $80,000+, similar to the current Nexus, Elevate and Thrive programs. This ensures that a wide range of stakeholders within the cultural arts’ ecosystem can participate with varying levels of fiscal health. Options for grant programs that do not include variable and responsive funding based on a variety of stakeholder experiences should not be considered. c. Providing funding programs that allow for equal value of durational projects and organizations with seasons of programming that extend more than two seasons per year. 3. PROGRAM ADMINISTRATION — Program changes and operations could include: a. Operational Improvements: An annual review for operational improvements across all funding programs that can be resolved and improved upon by City staff b. Program Design Improvements: A community engagement process and program efficacy audit every three years to inform the design, mission, vision and direction of programs. c. Scoring Improvements: Panelist recruitment efforts, scoring operations and panelist qualifications should be audited annually by staff to close identified gaps and ongoing programs in operations, scoring processes and recruitment. d. Public Engagement Improvements: Program changes should require a minimum six months of community engagement with the inclusion of a minimum 5% input from directly impacted stakeholders. This public engagement should consider media literacy, as well as misinformation and disinformation tactics’ effects on the public engagement process.