2014 Cultural District Annual Report

Transcription

1 #30 COMPLETE Collector: Web Link 1 (Web Link) Started: Tuesday, January 20, :54:22 AM Last Modified: Tuesday, January 20, :11:00 AM Time Spent: 01:16:37 IP Address: PAGE 1: Annual Report Impact Questions Q1: Name of Cultural District: City of Tallulah Historic Cultural District Q2: Contact Information for person completing this report: Name: Yvonne Lewis Company/Organization: City of Tallulah City/Town: Tallulah Address: ylewis@tallulah-la.gov Phone Number: Q3: ACCOMPLISHMENTS~List accomplishments in the district during the past year. Information should include marketing efforts; special events; organizational meetings; status of renovations; volunteer projects; infrastructure improvements; opportunities for artists; crime rate; etc. (Use as many lines as needed) 1. Completed the 18 unit Elm Street affordable home subdivision 2. Applied to enlarge the existing Cultural District to include historic homes and buildings that will be renovated in the future 3. Conducted the annual Fall festival and provided the opportunity for new musical acts to perform for the community 4. Completed the annual Christmas Festival where over 50 artistic vendors were invited to display their wares 5. Began the renovations on the "Scottland House" historic home by owner who plans to turn home into a local history museum 6. Began inclusion of "Cultural District" designation in collateral marketing material given to Louisiana state and federal delegation members 1 / 6

2 Q4: IMPACT OF SALES TAX EXEMPTION~Estimate the number of businesses, organizations, artists, events, and members of the public that used the original art sales tax exemption during this calendar year. Use approximate numbers, you are not expected to have exact figures. IMPORTANT NOTE: Numeric fields- USE ONLY DIGITS- no words, characters, or symbols, like dashes, $ or commas are accepted. # of Businesses 10 # of Organizations 11 # of Individual Artists 22 # of Art Sale Events 8 # of Public Benefitting 7023 Q5: RENOVATION PROJECTS~Indicate the approximate number of building renovation projects begun in the Cultural District during this calendar year. # Residential Projects 2 # Commercial Projects 1 Q6: BUILDING OCCUPANCY~Indicate the percent of vacant buildings in the Cultural District. (Refer to the vacancy reported in initial application) 15 Q7: OTHER INCENTIVES~List any additional local incentives offered to businesses and/or qualifying artists residing in the district. Or enter "None" 1. Application submitted to expand cultural district to encompass new and existing artists 2. Cutural District collaborated with local military memorabilia artist to display paintings at 2014 Veterans program 3. Cutural district continues to collaborate with Louisiana arts organizations to promote or sponsor upcoming events for the cultural district Q8: ECONOMIC ACTIVITY MEASUREMENTS~List approximate numbers for cultural economic activity occurring within the Cultural District during this calendar year. NOTE! Numeric fields- USE ONLY DIGITS - no words, characters, or symbols, like $ or commas are accepted. Number of new businesses opened. 0 How many were arts/cultural businesses? 0 Number of businesses closed. 0 How many were arts/cultural businesses? 0 Approximate number of cultural events? 5 Approximate number attending events? / 6

3 Q9: Do you have a plan for the development of your Cultural District? This can include existing plans for the city, local government agencies, urban plans, strategic plans, community plans, etc., or it may be a plan developed specifically to enhance arts and cultural experience in the Cultural District. Yes Q10: If you answered "YES" to the previous, please provide a brief description of the key objectives, tasks, financing, and cost of implementing the plan. The City of Tallulah is currently applying to expand the boundaries of the current Cultural District to include more historic homes and buildings to be used to enhance the quality of living in Tallulah. The expansion fits into the development of a strategic marketing plan for the City to attract more tourists and potential artists to the area. The key objectives of the cultural district are to provide a creative atmosphere for local artists, revitalize the entire "downtown" area and to build a more tourist friendly area(s) in Tallulah. While there is no funding needed for the boundary change application, the benefits to the city are vast. More artist opportunities, means the opportunity to attract new customers to the area. More historic homes in the district will equate to more tourists coming to tour those homes/museums. Additionally, if the cultural district boundary is approved, historic Tallulah High School (which is already on the National Register) has been designated as a venue of interest to the Brownstone Group, a construction company that renovates historic buildings. Q11: GOAL SETTING (Please Note ~ This is a new to contribute to planning for your district.)list three or more goals that will improve the district and describe how they can be accomplished. The goals should relate to one or more of the items listed below. Be concise. A. Artistic or cultural development - the promotion of the arts, encouraging creativity, attracting artists or other cultural businesses, new artist housing and studio spaces. B. Community development - engaging residents, providing a sense of community, serving as a gathering place, strengthening community partnerships, developing a positive image of your District C. Economic development - revitalizing the neighborhood, enhancing property values, stimulating the economy, drawing tourists, establishing new businesses 1. Gain approval for expansion of the existing boundaries of the Tallulah Cultural District. With the approval of the cultural district boundaries for Tallulah, the district will then encompass the Scottland Plantation House (on the National Register), Historic Tallulah High School (on the National Register) and the historic Coca Cola Building (on the National Register). Preliminary planning and work is already in progress to turn these buildings into local history or modern history museums and a potential senior destination. 2. "Fight the Blight" on the scenic route in Tallulah. The City of Tallulah has put together a working committee of local citizens to brainstorm uses for the historic Tallulah High School building. The building is located on the main scenic drive through Tallulah and has become an eyesore in the community. As a part of the expanded cultural district, the building then becomes a potential source for federal funding and, should that funding be provided, the venue will be turned into housing, an outdoor public scape and an amphitheater for concerts. All of which work toward strengthening communities ties and re-inventing the Tallulah brand. 2. Revitalization of historic "Depot" Street in Tallulah. Once known as "the" place to go for shopping and entertainment in northeast Louisiana, Depot Street in Tallulah has been hit hard by blight. Those businesses who maintain a presence have seen their property values decrease and customer numbers decrease. The City of Tallulah has a plan to revitalize the entire "main" street in the community to help draw tourists, provide potential space for artists and to renew and revitalize the "heart" of the community. 3 / 6

4 Q12: Briefly describe the Organizational Structure of your Cultural District. Organizational structure refers to who is responsible for communications, promotions, and reports for your district. This may be the local government, a staff person, a community organization, a volunteer, or other. Indicate whether the responsibility falls to a single person, an organization, or a cultural district advisory team. Yvonne Lewis, Public Relations Coordinator for the City of Tallulah has been named as the Cultural District representative. Ms. Lewis works directly for the Mayor of the City of Tallulah, and has a strong working relationship with the Tallulah City Council, Madison Parish Police Jury, Madison Parish Tourism Office and the Madison Parish Economic Development Council. All of the entities have agreed to work together to enhance the quality of living in Tallulah, Louisiana and Madison Parish as a whole. Q13: Who is responsible for setting goals, implementing tasks, and fulfilling responsibilities for your district. Choose all that apply? Arts Council, Business Association, Business Owner, Chamber of Commerce, Community Development Corporation, Cultural District Advisory Group, Developer, Educational Institution, Main Street Manager, Mayor s Office, Neighborhood Association, Non-Profit Organization, Staff Person, Tourism Office, Volunteer, Other (please specify) City of Tallulah Beautification Commission 4 / 6

5 Q14: Communication and Promotion of the Cultural District --Indicate which tools were used to communicate with residents, businesses, or organizations about selling original works of art, state historic tax credits, and promoting events to the public. Rate the effectiveness of each tool. Website Facebook/Social Media Brochure Newsletter Events Calendar Flyers Boulevard Pole Signage TV/Radio Advertisements Stories/Articles State sponsored public meetings Local Government sponsored public meetings Neighborhood or Business Association public meetings Average Not Used Not Used Good Not Used Average Average Other ~ List or describe other methods of communication used Social media outlets Twitter and Instagram, partnership with local television and print newspaper outlets. Now that Ms. Lewis is in the position of cultural district representative, additional marketing materials will be developed, including brochures, newsletters and blogs. 5 / 6

6 Q15: Rank your top 6 choices for services that could be provided by the State that would most benefit the development of your Cultural District? Yearly and mandatory meeting of all Cultural District representatives Competitive grant up to $5,000 for implementation of Cultural District plans and activities Grants for infrastructure improvements - streetscapes, lighting, landscaping, sidewalks Information and assistance related to signage for the Cultural District Social networking between cultural districts representatives - listservs, Facebook, etc. State sponsored paid advertisements promoting all cultural districts 4th Choice 1st Choice 2nd Choice 3rd Choice 5th Choice 6th Choice Other (please specify what you need most) The Tallulah Cultural District is in dire need of funding to help create venues for potential artists to be housed in. PAGE 2: SurveyMonkey Audience Q16: Gender Respondent skipped this Q17: Age Respondent skipped this Q18: Household Income Respondent skipped this Q19: Education Respondent skipped this Q20: Location (Census Region) Respondent skipped this 6 / 6