City of Prince George Cultural Grants Criteria

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1 ARTS POLICY STATEMENT In keeping with the mission statement of the City of Prince George, the purpose of this arts policy is to promote Prince George as the Northern Arts Capital of BC through providing access to the arts for all citizens by supporting the arts, encouraging partnerships, stimulating excellence and acknowledging and promoting the contribution of the arts towards providing an excellent quality of life in Prince George. GENERAL ADMINISTRATION The City of Prince George, Leisure Services Department, Parks and Recreation Division with the assistance of an arts advisory body will review and make recommendations to City Council on the Cultural Grants. APPLICATION CRITERIA 1. Organizations may apply in more than one category 2. The organization must be a registered society and in good standing with the registrar. 3. A board of directors must be in operation. 4. Financial responsibility must be demonstrated through preparation of operating budgets and independently reviewed financial statements. 5. The organization must demonstrate financial need. 6. The organization s activities must contribute to developing, stimulating and improving the arts in Prince George. 7. The activities of the organization must be accessible to the residents of Prince George and demonstrate a positive impact on the community 8. The organization must demonstrate support from some other source other than public funds. 9. The organization must acknowledge the contribution from the City of Prince George in any brochures or pamphlets. 10. The organization must meet the definition of the arts as defined in the City of Prince George Arts Policy. 1

2 Application Criteria Continued 11. The grant will not fund: City of Prince George a) Research (other than research to identify the need for, or the effectiveness of, various types of programs); b) Transportation (other than transportation that is incidental to the program); c) Provision of services which are clearly within the legislated mandates of other orders of government; d) Payment of City property taxes; e) Operating or capital deficits incurred in prior years; f) Agencies that are primarily funding bodies to other organizations; g) Programs or projects directed to the preservation of (as distinct from the explanation or demonstration of) any ethno-cultural heritage; h) Academic or certain technical training; i) Construction or repair costs; j) Individuals; Organizations receiving grants may engage in one or more of the activities noted above, but the City s grant cannot be used for these purposes. 2

3 GRANT OBJECTIVES In granting financial assistance to arts organizations, the City is seeking to support arts programs that: 1. contribute to the creation of a sense of community identity and spirit, and which contribute to an individual s sense of belonging to the community, through the arts; 2. contribute to individual growth and development, with particular emphasis on development of the creative potential of people, on youth activities and on community recreation activities; 3. contribute to developing family strength and cohesion by the provision of opportunities for the family to participate as a unit; 4. contribute to the understanding of our heritage as a City and Nation, the encouragement of diversity, uniqueness and innovation, and the promotion of respect for diverse cultural traditions 5. contribute to community growth and development by fostering increased contact between people of varying groups within the city; 6. will improve coordination and integration of existing services and improve the capacity of board members and staff to plan, develop, promote, manage, and evaluate organizational activities; 7. are related to identifiable disadvantaged groups within the community and which are intended to remove barriers to access to the arts; 8. will contribute to addressing the City s priority issues as identified from time to time. 3

4 CATEGORIES OF SUPPORT The following 5 categories are areas that the Arts Grants may consider for funding. 1. OPERATING GRANTS These grants represent a contribution towards the overall operating cost of a non profit organization and are not earmarked for any specific project or activity. Operating grants can not exceed one third of the organization s overall budget. A) Annual Operating Grant To be eligible for this operating grant the organization must be established in the community for a minimum of two years and offer a season of programs or operate a year-round facility for the organization and presentation of arts activities. B) Core Operating Grant Established arts groups operating municipal facilities and/or having full time paid staff may be eligible for annual operating grants over a three-year period. These grants will be approved every three years; however, these groups must submit standard grant request forms annually for review. 2. PROJECT GRANTS These grants are available to eligible arts organizations for projects involving the creation, production or presentation of works that will be completed within a specified time and are of a non-recurring nature. Projects that can be fully funded through other grant sources are ineligible for support. 4

5 3. DEVELOPMENT GRANTS Development Grants will be made available: New Initiatives New Organizations -To assist in new initiatives by established organizations. -To provide seed funding for the development of new organizations in the arts. New organizations or new initiatives by established eligible organizations will be considered for developmental grants for a period of two years, after which they will be considered under the operating grant category, subject to artistic considerations and budget limitations. 4. EQUIPMENT GRANTS These grants are available to not for profit organizations for the purchase of essential equipment to improve the artistic qualities of performances, exhibitions or contribute to administrative efficiency of the organization. The equipment purchased must be owned by the organization and not by individuals within the organization. Costumes and uniforms are not eligible, as these are considered ongoing production costs. Applicants may receive support in this category once every three years. The amount eligible is 50% of total equipment cost to a maximum of $5, TRAINING This grant is intended to assist with the upgrading of skills and knowledge of a member or members of a group in order to improve the performance of that group for the benefit of the community. A not-for-profit organization must apply for this grant, not individuals. The grant is payable to the not for profit organization. 5

6 EVALUATION The City will assess applications on the basis of the following criteria as they pertain to the Grant Objectives : Artistic achievement and/or creation New initiatives Program quality Community need, service and support Financial viability Audience and membership The amount of funding granted for approved applications under the above categories will depend on such factors as: Proportion of amount applied for in relation to group s total annual budget Evidence of real effort in marketing and self-financing shown by diversity of sources of revenue (e.g. grants from other funding agencies, fundraising, sponsorships, ticket sales, subscriptions, memberships, user fees, etc.) CURRENT YEAR FUNDING EMPHASIS Within the framework of the Grant Objectives this year the City encourages arts groups to make grant applications for programs or projects that emphasize: 1. Youth; 2. Promotion of the community; 3. Downtown revitalization; 4. Encourage celebrations and special events downtown; 5. Promoting Community Partnerships. REPORT/EVALUATION ON FUNDED ACTIVITY The City expects that programs/projects will be evaluated to see if they meet the intended objectives and, if not, why not. Organizations successful in obtaining a City grant will be asked to complete a final report by October 31. Applicants will not be considered for any future grant request until this report has been submitted. The method of evaluation will depend on the nature of the program/project, and will be discussed with successful applicants. If all funds have not been used for the intended or closely related purpose, the surplus must be returned. 6