Report to Mayor and City Council
Tuesday, August 01, 2017
Discussion
SUBJECT:
Title
CONSIDER ALLOCATIONS FOR CULTURAL ARTS GRANTS AS RECOMMENDED BY THE CULTURAL ARTS COMMISSION (CITY COUNCIL)
Body
I. SUMMARY
At the July 12, 2017 adjourned regular meeting, the Cultural Arts Commission decided on a 7 to 0 vote to recommend funding for 5 of the 9 organizations that applied for Cultural Arts funding. These five applicants are Carson-based and achieved the required minimum rating score of 70 points. The total amount of funding being recommended by the Commission for the fiscal year 2017/18 is $80,000.00. Council reduced the funding from the allocation of $164,000 in last year’s budget. The City Council is asked to approve the allocation of funds for the Cultural Arts Grants for fiscal year 2017/18 as recommended by the Cultural Arts Commission.
II. RECOMMENDATION
Recommendation
APPROVE the Cultural Arts Commission recommendations for 2017/18 Cultural Art grants.
Body
III. ALTERNATIVES
1. REJECT the Cultural Arts Commission Recommendations for 2017/18 Cultural Art grants.
2. PROVIDE alternative recommendations for the Cultural Arts grant 2017/18 program.
3. TAKE another action the Council deems appropriate.
IV. BACKGROUND
On June 19, 2017, nine grant applicants made presentations before the Cultural Arts Commission. The Commission reviewed scores and deliberated over the recommendations for funding the grants at their adjourned regular meeting on July 12, 2017. Both meetings were properly posted.
The total amount requested from the nine applicants was $220,110.00. The applicants who submitted proposals include:
• Alexey Steele - $20,000
• C2R Productions - $20,000
• CSUDH Art Gallery - $7,500
• CSUDH Department of Theatre and Dance - $7,500
• International Printing Museum - $9,750
• Mariachi Academy of Carson - $35,000
• Monteclaro Cultural & Community Medicine Foundation - $41,160
• Rockin Blues Entertainment - $34,200
• Sophisticated Dance, Inc. - $45,000
Deliberations were conducted in accordance with the funding guidelines established by the City Council on November 8, 2006.
The first step in the recommendation process was to rate each applicant with a score ranging from 0 to 100. Rating sheets (Exhibit No. 1) were provided to each commissioner. Applicant scores were based on Project Impact, Project Goal, Project Budgeting, Project Viability, Project Integrity, and whether or not the applicant is Carson-based. Each Commissioner completed an individual rating and the results were tabulated onto a spreadsheet (Exhibit No. 2). All nine applicants scored an average of 70 or better after the scores were tabulated by staff.
The second step in the process was for each commissioner to offer a funding recommendation for each applicant who scored 70 or higher. Each Commissioner was asked for a verbal funding recommendation via roll call. Staff then calculated and announced the average funding recommendation for each applicant. Only five of the nine applicants averaged higher than the $7,500 funding minimum, and the total of all of the recommendations only came to $64,072. When the commission realized they were well short of the $80,000 budget, they continued to deliberate. Rather than funding one or two additional contractors who scored above 70 points, they divvied up the remaining $15,928 among the five applicants for whom they had already recommended funding. A matrix showing the original funding request, overall rating, and funding recommendation is attached (Exhibit No. 3).
Below are the recommendations for funding from the Cultural Arts Commission. The recommendations total to the full allocation of $80,000.
Alexey Steele: $0
Artist Alexey Steele hopes to continue his “Love My Neighbor” campaign. He will produce a body of several new original works of art depicting visually striking and diverse (on multiple cultural, social, and psychosocial levels) characters representing the community of Carson. The final world-class art will be made available for free viewing by all people of the city in designated publicly accessible venues including Scottsdale, Carson Park, and Wells Fargo Carson Town Center Store.
C2R Productions: $0
Videographer and Carson native Brandon James proposes filming a documentary about the City of Carson as we approach our 50th Anniversary. The project will be filmed over the course of six months, and it will capture the history of the City of Carson in an artistic manner. He will showcase the finished product at an event at the Carson Community Center.
CSUDH Art Gallery: $0
A series of eighteen Praxis Studio Art workshops will be taught by an expert art educator and professor at the Carson Boys and Girls Club. Funding includes supplies and printing for hands-on studio art activities by the K-12 participants, and an exhibition journal with the student work related to the exhibit.
Department Theatre and Dance, Cal State University Dominguez Hills: $0
The Department of Theatre and Dance requests support for the costuming of their dance concert, “Rise”.
International Printing Museum: $9,750
The International Printing Museum will continue to bring the traveling educational program, “A Museum on Wheels: Benjamin Franklin’s Colonial Assembly,” to the schools of Carson. This is a two-hour presentation that brings life to the world of books, inventions, history, science, American History, and the life of Dr. Benjamin Franklin.
Mariachi Academy of Carson (ACSB): $18,612
The Mariachi Academy is the primary provider of Mariachi music in the South Bay region. It will provide children and youth with the opportunity to learn the value and richness of this beautifully acclaimed music form.
Monteclaro Cultural and Community Medicine Foundation, Inc.: $15,176
Events include cultural arts from the community youth garden, such as vegetable art, gardening and culinary workshops, cultural dance and music workshops, Kuento audio project, media arts community project, children’s garden project, TeachMe Foundation special needs program, hug-a-bully project, and Bayani coalition project.
Rockin Blues Entertainment: $21,862
The purpose is to bring community together through music and art, and to develop the hidden talent in the community by teaching the art of stage presence, performance, expression, microphone technique, personal commitment and confidence.
Sophisticated Dance: $14,600
Sophisticated Dance will continue offering performing arts activities to keep the interests of our students positive and productive while allowing them to grow and express talent.
A complete recap of the rating scores and Cultural Arts Commission funding recommendations is attached (Exhibit No. 3).
Per action by the City Council on May 18, 2015, and if approved for funding, both the Mariachi Academy of Carson and Sophisticated Dance will enjoy fee waivers for use of facilities at the Congresswoman Juanita Millender-McDonald Community Center not to exceed those days and hours as directed by City Council.
V. FISCAL IMPACT
The recommended allocation of $80,000 is available in the 2017/18 approved budget. The City Council has been phasing in reductions to the program, from $164,000 in the prior year. The City in the past has budgeted more than $400,000 for the program. The City Council also formed the Carson Community Foundation in 2016, which is a non-profit organization with a mission to support community events and organizations. It is hoped that over time the Community Foundation can absorb the remaining $80,000 in General Fund allocation to fund the program.
Each recipient is required to submit a quarterly report. Funds will be dispersed in quarterly installments pending compliance with financial reporting requirements as determined by a city accountant. The total funding amount recommended by the Cultural Arts Commission is $80,000, which is on budget.
VI. EXHIBITS
1. Cultural Arts Rating Sheet (page 5)
2. Recap of Rating Scores (page 6)
3. Recap of Funding Amounts (page 7)
Prepared by: Dani Cook, Seniors Services Coordinator II