CANMORE – After celebrating three years in the community, artsPlace in Canmore is hoping to see increased municipal funding to help it continue to grow.
Executive director Jeremy Elbourne was in front of Canmore council on Oct. 9 to present artsPlace’s 2019-22 strategic plan, which includes a request to increase funding by $10,500 above the $220,000 it received this year.
Elbourne told council the plan includes a goal to increase participation by 11 per cent and fundraising by 28 per cent as part of its long-term sustainable financial model.
“That growth will be achieved through a very balanced and sustainable financial model and a big part of that is our fundraising capacity as an organization,” he said. “A big part of what is really driving our growth moving forward is an extensive community consultation process we are currently in the middle of.”
ArtsPlace is currently conducting a survey about its programming and Elbourne said the results will be analyzed to help it nail down what the arts centre should be offering in terms of programming as well as its spatial needs.
The three revenue streams the organization relies on include revenue earned from ticket sales and program fees, facility rentals and concession sales, as well as fundraising and public sector funding.
“You will see the Town’s funding is really the main focus of that,” he said. “I would like to emphasize that you will see from our numbers that we are trending more toward contributed revenue and earned revenue as a model and shifting from the government side of things … but the Town’s support is still a really key component.”
Elbourne said municipal funding helps support artsPlace to keep its programs accessible to as many people as possible. It also shows potential donors and sponsors that the organization has a balanced financial model supported by the public sector.
The request to council is a 2.5 per cent inflationary increase and includes an added $5,000 to cover capital costs.
“As the building gets older, some of the capital purchases will need to be replaced, and as we look at new programs we will have to buy new things,” he said.
Elbourne also noted the municipal government set aside money prior to artsPlace opening, and over the next several years the organization intends to use those funds to support its operations.
“As those funds are used up, the plan is to reach the norm for actual Town funding,” said Elbourne.
“In the spirit of the original service agreement we see those covering operating costs … not to support fundraising, marketing, or program delivery costs.”
In 2018, artsPlace used $24,000 from the reserve fund in addition to the $220,000 the municipality provided.
In 2019, the organization has proposed using $15,000 from the fund on top of $230,500 from the Town.
By 2022, once the reserve fund is completely dry, funding from the Town of Canmore would total $247,500 and represent 21 per cent of total revenue for artsPlace.
The total budget for artsPlace operations in 2018 was $1.03 million and by 2022 that will reach $1.2 million, according to its four-year strategic plan.
Elbourne told council the mission for artsPlace is to grow the arts in a way that enriches lives and operate a community gathering space for creative exploration.
In 2017 more than 500 programs, screenings, events, or exhibitions were held and 20,532 people participated in registered programs.
Elbourne added the arts centre contracted 247 artists last year, developed more than 100 community partnerships, saw 1,450 volunteer hours and engaged 500 children or youth through outreach programs.
“It was a very successful year for us,” he said. “I think these numbers are a tremendous indication of the way we have engaged with the community.
“One of the other successes of the (2017) year was we were able to put together our strategic map and this really outlines what our aspirations are as an organization, the impact we want to have on the community and the stakeholders we (want to work with).”
Mayor John Borrowman said council is entering into a tough budget cycle, looking at the next four years of operating and capital beginning in November.
“Our budget this year is going to be particularly gruesome,” he said.
“We will see where it goes, but when the budget finally comes to finance committee for discussion there is no end to the things we could spend more money on.”
