- September 21, 2024
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For two hours, the Volusia County Council heard impassioned pleas at its meeting on Tuesday, June 6, from representatives of local art organizations, artists and art enthusiasts, all echoing a central message: Do not eliminate the Cultural Council of Volusia County.
The councilmen listened and voted 6-0 to keep the Cultural Council active — which simultaneously keeps its $611,758 of grant funding in play for local cultural and heritage organizations. Councilman David Santiago was absent.
“There’s nobody up here that doesn’t agree art and culture is valuable to the community,” County Council Chair Jeff Brower said.
Brower, who had broached the topic at a council meeting on April 18, said that he did so to reexamine the Cultural Council, which was created by the County Council in 1989, and how to best fund the arts.
He still wants to alter the program — for instance, by streamlining the application process to make it easier on organizations, requiring a transparency page for onboarding requirements and bylaws, and basing grant awards on merit.
“You’ve already got [the information],” Brower said. “But the public doesn’t know it. They don’t see it. They don’t have any idea how you handle your money, and they look at us and say, ‘Why are you giving this money away?’”
The Cultural Council, a nine-member advisory board, provides operating grants to local cultural and heritage organizations. The funding supports over 30 organizations that serve over one million people, according to the county’s website.
Unlike other county grant programs, the Cultural Council grant funding amount of $611,758 has not increased in the last 13 years, said Donna Butler, county director of community services.
In the 2021-2022 fiscal year, some of the organizations that received community cultural grants include youth arts charity ArtHaus, the Daytona Playhouse, Bel Canto Singers of Daytona, Ormond Beach Historical Society, the Ormond Memorial Art Museum and the Museum of Arts and Sciences.
Former OMAM director Susan Richmond, who used to fill out the grant applications, described the grant funding as “golden dollars.”
“We can use them for operating expenses,” she said. “Many of the funding opportunities out there are purely program-driven. If you want to have a free art class for veterans, if you want to have children’s theater and so many of the programs that have been mentioned today, there are sources for that kind of funding. But if you need it, you can use county grant money to keep your lights on, pay your insurance and keep your internet going.”
Fine artist Shannon Holt said the arts are an “important community builder.”
She cited the city of DeLand as an example: It’s attractive to visitors because of its robust arts scene, with murals, art installations and museums.
“The arts create a welcoming sense of belonging, engaging citizens to integrate and learn about each other and our cultures,” she said. “The arts preserve culture and heritage and showcase our county’s unique character traditions for future generations.”
Among the speakers was former County Councilwoman Barb Girtman, who spoke on the economic impact that arts and culture have on the local community.
She said she remembers what it’s like to have to make tough fiscal decisions, too.
“Today, what I saw was our community telling you the investment that they want you to make, and you as a representative of them, the decision that they need for you to make to support our community,” she said.
County Councilman Jake Johansson said he didn’t think it was ever the council’s intention to eliminate the cultural arts.
But the council is serious about protecting taxpayers’ dollars, he said.
“It isn’t that we think culture isn’t worth funding,” Johansson said. “It’s to make sure that the dollars we give are dollars well spent.”
Councilman Don Dempsey, who used to run a comedy club, said he understands and appreciates the arts — but that there are also people asking the council not to raise taxes at a time when costs are rising.
“It really is a tough balance,” he said. “I just don’t want you guys thinking — I speak for myself on this — we somehow slight you guys or we don’t think that what you do is important.”
