Editorial: Council shows leadership with arts funding decision

Four local arts groups went before council last week with what is usually considered a long-shot ask: More money.

The four groups have had a joint multi-year funding agreement with the City of Prince George for over a decade, but the amount provided has seen only slight annual increases in that time.

The delegation included Eli Klasner, executive director of the Community Arts Council, Marnie Hamagami, artistic producer of Theatre Northwest, Sue Judge, executive director of the Coldsnap Festival and Ken Hall, executive director of the Prince George Symphony Orchestra appeared before council to make their case.

Municipal governments are traditionally wary of spending too much public money on the arts. They recognize that the average taxpayer has little interest in the arts beyond TV, movies and popular music. It has, in most communities, always been a struggle for arts organizations to convince their elected leaders that they’re worth the investment.

Prince George council, it turns out, doesn’t think that way. The four groups gave a polished, professional presentation, pointing out that while the national and provincial funding average is $25 per capita for the arts, in Prince George it’s $7 per capita. Too low, they told council, pointing to other BC cities that fund their arts far beyond that $25, and specifically noting the significant investment the Regional District of Fraser-Fort George makes in its museums (which are both educational and artistic, with a tourism component as well).

It went much more smoothly than expected, from the looks on the delegates’ faces as they realized council was OK with the idea. Council voted to support the push by the four organizations to add $200,000 to their 2025 budget ask. As with the existing funding, these additional dollars will be divided among them proportionately.
Council showed remarkable unity and leadership on this issue by providing city staff with clear direction to include this as funded in the upcoming budget.

There are those who will object to this out of principle. Arts, like businesses, should be self-sustaining, they argue. This ignores the many subsidies, low-interest loans, grants and tax breaks available to Canadian businesses from all levels of government. But it speaks to a bigger misunderstanding of how important the arts really are.

Here’s the myth: Artists are chasing your tax dollars so they can avoid “real work” and swirl paint around a canvas or write poetry in the attic. Here’s the reality: The arts generate millions of dollars for the Prince George economy. Festivals, galleries, concerts … the arts are big business. People travel to enjoy them. They pay for tickets, they stay in hotels, they buy gas, they dine out.

If it helps, try to think of the arts in the same way you think about local sports, something that receives a fair amount of government funding without much in the way of public outcry. Sports generate revenue. People travel to enjoy them. They pay for tickets, they stay in hotels, the buy gas, they dine out. You get it.
The myth comes from a general lack of understanding of what the arts really are. Perhaps this additional funding will help these organization reach more people and ease that concern that the arts don’t matter.

Luckily, this does not appear to be the sentiment of the members of our current council. It was clear last Wednesday that in addition to the cultural component, this council understands that funding the arts, like funding local sports, makes good business sense.

Just this past week, the city completed work on the CN Centre audio system. That’s public funds (although it did come in under budget at $700,000 rather than the expected $950,000) that were spent on improvements to a city-owned facility. Nobody’s griping about that.

So let’s look at the arts groups’ win as what it is – a sign that Prince George council values their contribution to the culture and, perhaps as importantly, to the economy of our city. And, if this is a sign of new forward thinking, we may yet see a Civic Core Plan that includes a convention and arts facility.