NOVEMBER 24, 2003

City of Providence
Mayor David N. Cicilline
www.providenceri.com

Vision for Art & Culture in Providence

"The arts, instead of quaking along the periphery of our policy concerns, must push boldly into the core of policy. The arts are a response to our individuality and our nature and help to shape our identity.”
– Congresswoman Barbara Jordan

"Creative people have always gravitated to certain kinds of communities, such as the Left Bank in Paris or New York’s Greenwich Village. Such communities provide the stimulation, diversity and a richness of experiences that are the wellsprings of creativity.”
– Richard Florida in The Rise and Fall of the Creative Class

Art holds the power to create a shared cultural language, to connect communities and to transform the urban environment. Our vibrant arts and cultural community is essential to the health and well being of our citizens, and is what guarantees the quality of place that makes our city uniquely Providence. From classical arts institutions to organizations based in the diversity of our neighborhoods, Providence's artists and cultural organizations continually develop new vantage points from which to understand the world around us. By sharing these perspectives, the city’s soul is tended and enriched.

Providence is known nationally and internationally as an extraordinary, cultural destination. In September 2003, the New York Times described Providence as "a Mecca for Tourism and the Arts." And while Providence is already an attractive community for artists and others to live, work, and visit, it is my goal to harness the power of the arts to further transform Providence. By providing centralized support for our arts economy and forging cultural connections across neighborhood boundaries, we will become even more than the sum of our parts.

The mechanism for this transformation will be the newly created Providence Department of Art, Culture and Tourism. Through partnerships with the arts and cultural community; the citizenry at-large; other City departments, and State and Federal agencies, the Department of Art, Culture & Tourism will catalyze artistic innovation, and economic and human development across the city. The Department will implement a citywide, cultural plan for strategic and synergistic use of art, culture, film and tourism, which will build our downtown, inspire our neighborhoods, and enrich our schools.

Through the visibility of the Mayor's Office, the Department of Art, Culture & Tourism will raise the status of art and culture in city government, signaling their importance as integral components of city life. Arts and culture will be elevated to a position of equal partnership, in creating and implementing public policy, and will serve as a vehicle to create collaborative working relationships across city government. The Department will celebrate the social and economic power of art, as well as the tremendous potential of creative workers, as engines of growth and development in Providence.

· A cabinet-level director responsible to the Mayor and charged with advocating and promoting arts and culture in Providence both within and outside of city government.

· Incorporating the current staff and functions from the Office of Cultural Affairs, formerly housed in the Parks Department, in order to continue to develop and present high quality arts events that are accessible to all of the city’s residents.

· Partnership with the Providence Tourism Council and the Providence/Warwick Convention & Visitors Bureau to ensure a coordinated and effective tourism campaign that highlights the richness and diversity of arts and culture found in Providence. This partnership will develop local, regional, national and international marketing strategies to promote tourism to Providence.

· Creating a Providence Film Advisory Panel to work in partnership with the Department in order to encourage filmmaking in our city.

· Partnerships with nonprofit organizations to provide public programming in Providence. The Department will create, encourage and facilitate arts and cultural events that employ and promote the city's artistic community while drawing upon the wealth of artists on the national and international level.

· Close coordination with the Department of Planning to identify funding sources and physical space for the development and marketing of the arts and culture.

· Close coordination with Providence Economic Development Partnership (PEDP) to ensure that the economic potential of arts and culture is fully realized throughout the city.

· Development of an ongoing relationship with the Providence School Department to ensure that the arts are part of every child's education, as mandated by state law.

· Creation of a Mayor’s Arts, Culture, and Tourism Advisory Board made up of community members, which will work closely with the Director and staff of the Department.

· A mission to work closely with the private sector - universities, hospitals, businesses, banks, and foundations - to explore ways to fully promote the arts in Providence.

· Dedication to working cooperatively with the state and federal government, including cultivating ongoing relationships and sharing resources with RISCA, Rhode Island Film & TV Office, PTC – CVB, and with RICH, NEFA, the NEA and NEH for collaboration and non-duplicative granting wherever possible.

· Partnership and support of existing arts and cultural resources and services, to take advantage of the synergies available to the community at-large (e.g., ArtTix).

Services will include:

· Acting as a central clearinghouse for information, programs and services available for individuals, organizations and groups. Providing technical assistance, as well as print and Web-based information, to all who seek guidance on available resources for funding, housing, permits, licenses, tax incentives and other city, state, national or federal services.

· Creating effective communication tools for the Department to publicly inform and engage individuals and organizations, such as a website, e-letters, and public forums.

· Acting as a cultural ambassador for the City on the state, regional, national and international levels.

· Locating offices for the Department in an easily accessible, visible location.

Policies and initiatives will include:

· The Department will serve as the designated "local arts agency" for the City, creating clear guidelines and criteria for all seeking city funds in support of arts and culture, and its relationship to making the city a cultural destination.

· Explore options to enforce the City’s ‘1% for Art’ law. The Department, working with the Advisory Board will revisit the City’s ‘percent for Art’ law and examine successful policies in cities across the country.

· Determine the basis for on-going support, both for long-standing arts projects and cultural festivals, as well as for stable arts and cultural organizations, which contribute to making the City a viable cultural destination.

· Develop policy guidelines for grant making for projects, particularly those that are unique and innovative.

· Explore avenues for new funding and re-granting opportunities. With the local arts agency designation, the Department will have the ability to forge new relationships with the federal government and national foundations, to leverage grants for collaborative programming.