HomeMy WebLinkAboutCAO-18-012 - Collaborative Municipal Funding for Key Cultural Institutions: Summary Year 2REPORT TO: Finance and Corporate Services
DATE OF MEETING: April 9, 2018
SUBMITTED BY: Cory Bluhm, Executive Director, Economic Development,
519-741-2200 ext. 7065
PREPARED BY: Emily Robson, Coordinator, Arts/Creative Industries, Economic
Development 519-741-2200 ext. 7084
Silvia DiDonato, Manager, Arts/Creative Industries, Economic
Development 519-741-2200 ext. 7392
WARD (S) INVOLVED: All
DATE OF REPORT: March 23, 2018
REPORT NO.: CAO-18-012
SUBJECT: Collaborative Municipal Funding for Key Cultural Institutions: Year 2
Summary
__________________________________________________________________________________________
RECOMMENDATION:
None. For information.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY:
In May 2016, staff initiated the collaborative funding and assessment process by Kitchener,
Waterloo and the Region of Waterloo for the four Key Cultural Institutions. The development
of this process was a recommendation of the Arts Sustainability Fund Review report (CAO-15-
030) approved by Council in the fall of 2015. Furthermore, funding for THEMUSEUM,
Kitchener-Waterloo Symphony, and the Kitchener Waterloo Art Gallery was moved from Tier 1
into Economic Developments grants in 2017 (CAO-17-015) to support this initiative.
The Key Cultural Institutions currently identified by Kitchener, Waterloo and the Region are
Canadian Clay and Glass Gallery, Kitchener Waterloo Art Gallery, Kitchener Waterloo
Symphony, and THEMUSEUM. Municipal staff and the four Key Cultural Institutions (KCIs)
plan to present a summary of achievements at the All Council meeting in the spring of 2018.
The actual funding amounts and any related decision-making process continue to be made by
each individual municipality.
This report summarizes the implementation of the pilot process to date, findings from the
initiatives and describes next steps in the process.
*** This information is available in accessible formats upon request. ***
Please call 519-741-2345 or TTY 1-866-969-9994 for assistance.
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BACKGROUND:
In 2015 Council approved the Arts Sustainability Fund Review report (CAO-15-030) and
together with municipal partner organizations, a collaborative funding and
assessment process be established for the four regionally identified key cultural institutions,
being: Kitchener-Waterloo Symphony, Kitchener-Waterloo Art Gallery, Canadian Clay and
Glass Gallery and THEMUSEUM, in the form of a pilot program based on the model
recommended in the report; and further, that a regular communication mechanism be
formalized between all municipal funders regarding arts and cultural investment in the Region
of Waterloo.
A working group was established with staff representing the City of Kitchener, City of Waterloo,
Region of Waterloo and the City of Cambridge. This group collaborates with the staff and
board leadership for each of the KCIs. KCIs are large organizations that contribute to the social
and economic prosperity of the KW region, creating jobs and wealth, attracting visitors and
stimulating creative thought and activity. While these institutions are each independent, with
their own boards of directors, executive directors, staff teams, and facilities, together they
represent a significant asset and exert considerable influence locally. It is widely recognized
that cultural institutions play an important role in revitalization effortsoffering residents and
visitors engaging and diverse opportunities for cultural experiences, a strong desire and track
record of improving their surroundings, and leading the way for creative expression locally and
beyond. In addition, the key cultural institutions are integral in the local creative landscape,
providing performance, exhibition, creation, production and administrative spaces.Reliable
municipal operational funding is necessary to sustain the impact of these organizations and to
leverage funding from other levels of government and private sources.
This initiative aims to consider the total funding for the KCIs and assess the equity of the fund
allocation and ensure accountability of public funds.This collaborative approach recognizes
that Cambridge, Kitchener, Waterloo and the Region are significant funders of the four
organizations, and it is important for municipal staff to have an on-going understanding of their
strengths and challenges. In addition this collaborative approach has a number of benefits:
Improved transparency for decision-making
Improved accountability for public funds
Improved communication between municipalities, KCIs and Councils
Improved efficiency for KCIs and municipalities
It is important to note that, while the information submission and discussion takes place jointly
among municipal staff and the KCI representatives, the actual funding amounts and any
related decisions will continue to be made by each individual municipality.
REPORT
Based on the reports of the four KCIs, combined municipal investment contributed to
numerous social and economic benefits:
304 unique cultural experiences including exhibits, performances, and public activities
(almost one per day throughout the year);
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Total attendance of over 230,000 with over 78,000 of those visits being education
related; and
6.2 million dollars in earned and private sector revenues and over 1.4 million dollars in
revenue from other levels of government.
A sample of impact data provided by the KCIs is summarized below:
Selected impactsCCGGKWAGKWSTHEMUSEUM
Unique Cultural Experiences:
71024245
exhibits/performances/events
Total attendance:
19,471 45,909 87,70682,466
(subset education attendance)(5,587)(19,500)(44, 592)(8,573)
Earned Revenue +
$397,532+$110,096+$1,927,142+$871,768+
Private Sector Revenue$240,937$449,105$2,028,138$226,189
Federal Government Revenue +
$59,037 +$305,985+$449,105 +$63,645 +
Provincial Government Revenue$96,526$141,550$329,413$21,896
Key Findings
As part of the collaborative process, municipal staff meets with members of the staff and
Boards of the individual KCIs to discuss their goals, accomplishments, challenges, and to plan
for specific actions and outcomes for the upcoming year. The purpose of this discussion is to
identify opportunities for further cooperation,possible measure to mitigate challenges, and a
deeper understanding of each KCI and their work. The following themes were identified over
the course of the collaborative process:
Need for increased and stable funding:Reliable and sustainable operating funding is
needed. While additional funding from the Canada Council seemed like a possibility for
the KCIs that currently receive grants,requests for additional funds were not successful.
Overall, provincial funding is lower than average for local organizations relative to their
counterparts across the country.
An increase in community revenues: For financial years spanning 2017 and 2018, the
KCIs collectively are projecting an overall increase of almost 14% in community
revenues. This includes both earned revenue and private sector revenue. This is a trend
over the last number of years and indicates strong community support for the KCIs
individuals, foundations and corporations are more likely to be engaged in meaningful
projects and when high community impact is demonstrated.
Strong commitment to community engagement and partnerships: The KCIs continue to
expand their reach into the community by engaging with new audiences and forging
new partnerships. For example, the KWS has led the regional implementation of the
Blue Umbrella program to make arts and culture facilities more accessible to those with
dementia. The Art of Seeing program at KWAG, now entirely funded by the Department
of Family Medicine, McMaster University, uses the art experience to improve
and empathy, resulting in stronger physicians with
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better patient relationships. Working with The Kitchener and Waterloo Community
Foundation and Rotary Kitchener Grand River, the CCGG expanded their programming
to offer specific hands-on workshops for newcomers to the Region. THEMUSEUM
continues to develop programming aimed at young professionals, millennials, students
and culture craving urbanites, with their Museum after Dark (MAD) memberships.
Balance financial operational scarcity with high quality exhibitions: In order to maintain
current levels of provincial and federal funding, the KCIs receiving these funds must
demonstrate a high level of performance in organizational effectiveness and artistic and
community programming. It is a strategic endeavour to balance this commitment with
financial scarcity, especially reducing accumulated deficits. While maintaining their high
professional standing with the Ontario Arts Council peer jury by offering high quality
exhibition programming, KWAG has accommodated budget restrictions to reduce its
deficit. These reductions have made it challenging to offer competitive staff
this year the CCGG achieved an operating surplus, and has steadily reduced its
accumulated deficit. This approach has meant that other budget allocations have been
greatly reduced
reach into the community.
Municipal Investment in Key Cultural Institutions
The municipal investment in our Key Cultural Institutions recognizes the intrinsic value of arts
and culture, their economic impact and their overall contribution to the vitality of the region. In
the 2015 report, Review of Per Capita/Arts Sustainability Funding and Municipal Funding
Models for Key Cultural Institutions (CAO-15-030 Arts Sustainability Review), author Angela
Bridsell finds that any reductions in municipal funding risk the de-stabilization of organizations.
Municipal funding provides:
Stability to the organizations as well as the ability to leverage other grants;
Accessibility of programs and collections to broad audiences including youth, seniors
and newcomers; and
Public accountability of the benefits they bring to the community.
The table below summarizes the municipal funding to the KCIs and facility contributions (in-
kind) in 2017.
YĻǤ /ǒƌƷǒƩğƌ CğĭźƌźƷǤ CğĭźƌźƷǤ YźƷĭŷĻƓĻƩ ğƷĻƩƌƚƚ wĻŭźƚƓ /ğƒĬƩźķŭĻ ƚƷğƌ
LƓƭƷźƷǒƷźƚƓ ΛYźƷĭŷĻƓĻƩΜ ΛğƷĻƩƌƚƚΜ
CCGG υВЏͲЍЎВ͵ЉЉ υЎЉͲЉЉЉ υЊЍЏͲЍЎВ
KWAG υВАͲЋЍЉ͵ЉЉ υЋЉБͲЌЋЎ υАЏͲЎЉЉ υЌБЋͲЉЏЎ
KWS υЋЌЏͲЋБЋ υВБͲЉЉЉ υЌАБͲЊЉЉ υАЊЋͲЌБЋ
THEMUSEUM υЊЊЎͲАЍВ͵ЉЉ υЊЋЊͲЋЉЉ υЍЎͲЉЉЉ υЌАБͲЊЉЉ υЏЏЉͲЉЍВ
TOTAL $212,989.00 $96,459.00 $565,807 $269,500 $756,200 $0 $1,900,955
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The table below summarizes the proposed budgeted municipal funding to the KCIs and facility
contributions (in-kind) in 2018.
YĻǤ /ǒƌƷǒƩğƌ CğĭźƌźƷǤ CğĭźƌźƷǤ YźƷĭŷĻƓĻƩ ğƷĻƩƌƚƚ wĻŭźƚƓ /ğƒĬƩźķŭĻ ƚƷğƌ
LƓƭƷźƷǒƷźƚƓ ΛYźƷĭŷĻƓĻƩΜ ΛğƷĻƩƌƚƚΜ
CCGG υВЏͲЍЎВ υЎЉͲЉЉЉ υЊЍЏͲЍЎВ
KWAG υВВͲЊБЎ υЋЊЏͲЎАЎ υАЏͲЎЉЉ υЌВЋͲЋЏЉ
KWS υЋЍЌͲЍЊБ υВБͲЉЉЉ υЌБЎͲЏЏЋ υЍͲЎЉЉ υАЋАͲЉБЉ
THEMUSEUM υЊЊЎͲАЎВ υЊЌЌͲЋЉЉ υЍЎͲЉЉЉ υЌБЎͲЏЏЋ υЊͲЉЉЉ υЏБЉͲЏЋЊ
TOTAL $214,944 $96,459 $593,193 $269,500 $771,324 $5,500 $1,946,420
With a combined annual investment of almost $2M, the collaborative municipal funding
approach has introduced a more robust accountability framework and greater transparency of
the total municipal funding allocated to each KCI.
Data indicates that major cultural organizations receive 16%-50% in public funding, depending
on the type of organization, with municipal norms between 7% and 24%. Funding norms differ
by sector with performing arts organizations generally receiving around 30% and public
galleries closer to 50%. This is a reflection of higher overhead costs of building and collections
maintenance and lower (or nil) admission rates. Table 4 illustrates total municipal grants as a
per cent of total operating grant for each KCI. This table also indicates the operating budget of
each organization and offers a comparison between the KCIs. While municipal funding may be
slighting above industry norms, overall public funding levels are on par with comparative
organizations. This indicates that municipal funding is plugging a gap in provincial and in some
cases, federal funding. For this reason, part of the collaborative funding conversations includes
reporting on new funding sources, increased funding from other levels of government, and
earned revenue. Since the Review of Per Capita/Arts Sustainability Funding and Municipal
Funding Models for Key Cultural Institutions
revenues.
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Next Steps
In addition to following the established cycle of the collaborative funding and assessment
process, the Municipal Cultural Initiatives Working Group will review and refine the process
with a view to rationalizing the municipal funding allocations, building equity, and increasing
transparency.
The planned cycle of the collaborative funding and assessment process is outlined in the table
below, including at least three annual opportunities for council update or discussion.
Annual CyclePlanned activities
Q1Municipal staff process KCI grants within each independent budget process
Q2Municipal staff submit joint summary report to the individual councils (this report)
Municipal and KCI staff meet to assess process and results
KCIs present annual overview toAll Council Meeting
Q3KCIs submit individual reports onprevious fiscal year
KCIs request for funding for upcoming year through Municipal Working Group
Municipal staff meet with each KCIto review reports and discuss needs
Q4Municipal staff summarize discussion in form of strengths, challenges and planned
actions for each KCI
Municipal staff collaboratively identify potential budget issues
Municipal staff recommend KCI funding allocation to council as part of each municipal
budget process (issue paper if needed)
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To further develop and refine the process, the Municipal Cultural Initiatives Working Group has
identified the following actions:
Process ImprovementActivitiesStatusDate
Develop criteria for KCIsCompleteQ22017
Establish annual cycle with key dates & milestonesCompleteQ3 2017
Finalize submission guidelinesCompleteQ3 2017
Facilitate funding allocation discussionCompleteQ4 2017
Funding Agreements Prepared & ExecutedCompleteQ4 2017
Reportto CouncilIn ProgressQ1/2 2018
Conduct operational funding analysisIncompleteQ2 2018
Prepare decision-making frameworkIncompleteQ22018
Pilot decision-making framework for 2018 assessmentIncompleteQ3 2018
CONCLUSION:
Feedback on the collaborative municipal funding and assessment process has been positive.
Standardization of reporting and the implementation of collaborative meetings have created
more effective mechanisms for information-sharing and present opportunities for enhanced
efficiency, transparency, accountability and equity. To date, adoption of this funding model has
achieved many of the anticipated outcomes. In particular, this coordinated approach has given
staff and Council a clearer picture of the complete funding profile of each KCI, provided staff
with more insight into the opportunities and challenges unique to large cultural institutions,
leveraged other funding processes to streamline submission requirements and provide
municipal funders with more performance data, coordinated advocacy for the greater benefit of
the sector, and strengthened relationships between cultural organization and municipalities. It
is imperative to this initiative and its goals: efficiency, transparency, accountability and equity,
that all funding discussions related to the KCIs be part of the Collaborative Municipal Funding
and Assessment Process.
ALIGNMENT WITH CITY OF KITCHENER STRATEGIC PLAN:
through the delivery of core service.
FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS:
None. The actual funding amounts and any related decisions continue to be made by the City
of Kitchener as part of the annual budget process.
COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT:
INFORM This report has been post
council / committee meeting.
COLLABORATE Collaboration with regional partners has been extensive through the
Municipal Cultural Initiatives Working Group, community partners at the Key Cultural
Institutions and various stakeholders through previous meetings with partners and the Arts and
Culture Advisory Committee meetings.
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ACKNOWLEDGED BY: Dan Chapman, CAO
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Appendix 1
KCI Characteristics & Shared Goals
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Appendix 1
KCI Characteristics & Shared Goals
Key Cultural Institutions hold joint responsibility for public buildings, and/or have programming
intrinsically linked to those facilities. Their multi-layered programming cements and celebrates
arts, culture and ideas regionally, nationally and internationally.
The characteristics of organizations designated as KCIs were defined in the 2015 Review of
Per Capita/Arts Sustainability Funding. These core characteristics are:
Key cultural institutions uphold consistent professional standards and are recognized for
achievements in cultural production and programming at regional, national and
international levels.
They demonstrate leadership by encouraging greater community participation through
education and outreach, volunteerism, audience development, and collaborations with
other organizations and businesses.
They have large budgets with operating revenues greater than 1 million dollars, and
contribute to the social and economic prosperity of the region by creating jobs, attracting
visitors and stimulating creative thought and activity.
Key cultural institutions also usually have responsibility for public buildings, have
programming intrinsically linked to those facilities, and/or have responsibility for
conserving a permanent collection.
Paying professional fees
Bringing the outside in through programming/exhibitions etc.
As part of the collaborative process, municipal and KCI staff has identified goals that are
shared by both the municipalities and KCIs. These include:
Financial & Organizational Stability - Manages debt; engages strong leadership (stable,
representative, innovative); utilizes innovative marketing/audience development tools;
maintains diverse funding streams
Core Area Support - Actively participates in activities that draw people into the
community core areas
Community Education - Develops and presents high quality programs; provides initial
Community Diversity - Offers targeted programming to key audiences (children,
youth/teens, seniors, newcomers, Indigenous peoples, people of colour, young
professionals, etc.); increases access (by removing barriers to participation)
Economic Impact - Demonstrates excellence; nurtures and develops talent; attracts
audiences (from within and beyond the Region)
Collaborative/Partnership Opportunities (Sectoral Leadership) - Supports and develops
connections and collaborations; uses technology effectively; nurtures and grows
community capacity
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