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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2006 - Cultural Resources Board - Annual ReportCULTURAL RESOURCES BOARD ANNUAL REPORT - 2006 BACKGROUND The Cultural Resources Board consists of seven members. Regular meetings were held on the last Thursday of each month from 12:00 p.m, to 2:00 p.m. at the Lincoln Center. The Board receives monthly staff reports and acts in an advisory capacity to City Council for the Cultural Services and Facilities Department that includes Lincoln Center, the Fort Collins Museum and other responsibilities as needed. The Board reviews and advises staff on the following: annual budget, facilities improvement and programming (exhibits, shows, outreach) and other issues as they arise. The Board continues to gather community input on cultural issues and represent the ideas expressed. Members who served in 2006 were Sue Beck-Ferkiss, Ayleen Burns, Dr. Diane Gaede, Carol Ann Hixon, Patrick Moran, Jack Steele, and Ann Wilmsen. Patrick Moran served as Chairperson. Sue Beck-Ferkiss served as Vice -Chairperson. Council liaison: Karen Weitkunat. Staff Liaisons in 2006 were Marty Heffernan, Jill Stilwell, Cheryl Donaldson, Gail Budner, and Evan Hyatt. Liaison from the Convention & Visitors Bureau was Jim Clark and Cathy Jones. YEARLY HIGHLIGHTS - 2006 The Cultural Resources Board (CRB) outlined four strategies for 2006 to work towards their overarching goal: "to serve as a catalyst in making Fort Collins a cultural center and destination." 1. Serve as a catalyst for the development of a common vision to achieve the Overarching Goal by working with various organizations. Accomplishments: • The CRB met with their Council Liaison, Karen Weitkunat to better understand council vision. • CRB members served as liaisons and committee members to various groups to gain a broader understanding and level of participation in cultural activities. The CRB was represented with the following groups: - DDA's Beet Street Committee — Patrick Moran - Cultural Plan Task for on SCFD — Sue Beck-Ferkiss - Fort Collins Museum — Jack Steele Convention/Visitors Bureau — Ayleen Burns Art in Public Places — Ann Wilmsen DBA — Diane Gaede Arts Alive — Ann Wilmsen Bohemian Foundation — Carol Ann Hixon • The Board served as a focus group in exploring leveraging the Building on Basics tax dollars to provide greater benefit to Lincoln Center renovations. • The Board was also kept appraised of the progress of the partnership agreement between the Fort Collins Museum and Discovery Science Center. • Several Board members participated in interviews with consultants hired by the City to develop a Cultural Facilities Plan. 2. Enhance regional awareness of arts and cultural events and activities • The CRB facilitated the creation of a comprehensive, accessible cultural calendar on- line through the re -negotiations of the Fort Collins Convention and Visitors Bureau's (CVB) contract with the City. The new CVB website and events calendar was launched in October 2006. • The CRB also facilitated the requirement that the CVB provide a regional advertising campaign to begin promoting Fort Collins as a cultural center and destination. The advertising campaign began in the Fall of 2006. • The Board built on the work they had done in 2004 and 2005 to promote October as Arts & Humanities Month. Bookmarks promoting the month, local organizations, and the new events calendar on the CVB website were printed through a donation by Alex Cook and the Best Western University Inn. The Board accepted Mayor Hutchinson's proclamation of October as Arts & Humanities Month. The Board supported the Fort Collins Museum's Kick -Off event to celebrate Arts & Humanities Month. The event showcased various arts and humanities organizations in Fort Collins and occurred on the First Friday Gallery Walk in October. 3. Use and grow resources available to the Board to forward the overarching goal. • The Board monitored the impact of the three -tiered funding system that was instituted in 1998 and made changes as needed. The Board administered three funding sessions for Fort Fund and recommended grants for distribution as follows: January Session - $38,900 to 18 organizations April Session - $113,850 to 15 organizations June Session - $34,675 to 16 organizations Totaling $187,425 awarded in 2006 These grants resulted in support for over a hundred community cultural and recreational events. The Board revised the Fort Fund process to include a new scoring matrix and revised the application to match more closely the scoring matrix and allow applicants a better opportunity to explain their event. The new application will go into effect for the April 2007 funding session. The Board developed a recommendation for creating a Tier 4 for Fort Fund. Tier 4 would differ from the other Fort Fund tiers as it is a cultural entrepreneurial innovation fund that emphasizes tourism and uniqueness. Tier 4 aims to support new, larger cultural projects, that help forward the CRB's overarching goal. The recommendation is in the approval process and the Board hopes to implement Tier 4 in 2008. • The Board continued to work cooperatively with the Convention and Visitor's Bureau in making recommendations for Fort Fund dollars and in the work going into the creation of the new Tier 4. • The Board is supporting the task force exploring the creation of an SCFD for Fort Collins and the region. Sue Beck-Ferkiss serves as liaison to the task force and the Board participated as a focus group. 4. Provide networking opportunities for the exchange of ideas and resources. • Carol Ann Hixon assembled a database for Arts & Humanities Month that has proved beneficial for communicating with these organizations. • The CRB continues to provide Liaisons to appropriate groups in meeting the CRB's overarching goal. In 2006, the Board added the Downtown Development Authority, the Downtown Business Association, and reconnected with Arts Alive.