Due to budget constraints, The Office will postpone opening the next funding cycle for organizations to 2011. This means the 132 organizations currently funded by the Office’s Civic Partners program will receive a third year of funding.

Due to budget constraints, The Office will postpone opening the next funding cycle for organizations to 2011. This means the 132 organizations currently funded by the Office’s Civic Partners program will receive a third year of funding. The award amounts will be determined after the city’s 2011-2012 budget is adopted later this year. To qualify for continued funding, organizations will be required to update core financial and audience data.

The choice to extend funding for an additional year responds to feedback from regional arts leaders captured in the Helicon Report, a 2009 study of the impact of the economic recession on the arts. The study showed a desire for more flexible, streamlined funding, including extending awards and minimizing paperwork. Extending the funding for an additional year will reduce process and paperwork for funded organizations and our staff, saving time and resources in these lean times.

“It is counterproductive to encourage organizations to complete the rigorous application, only to be shut out or to receive token funding that results from cutting other groups’ allocations,” said Office Director Michael Killoren.

Organizations not funded through the Civic Partners program have other funding options—including smART ventures and the performing arts cycle of CityArtist Projects. Go to the funding section of our website or call a funding project manager to ask for guidance about your options.