Arts Council for Monterey County

Less public support for arts is the trend in many communities. Monterey County has reversed the pattern. Here is a happy story of increased commitment to arts by a local government, and of collaboration between a community foundation and arts council to make it happen. It begins in the context of public sector budgets.

Monterey County, like virtually all local governments in California, has faced severe financial pressures in recent years. In response to these challenges, county funding of the Arts Council declined from a 2003/04 high of more than $500,000 to less than $95,000 in 2006/07.

Based on continued budget concerns, county staff’s recommendation for 2007/08 funding was $120,000.

A winning combination

Working in tandem, the Arts Council of Monterey County and the Community Foundation for Monterey County engaged the County Board of Supervisors to revisit this recommendation. By emphasizing the vital role of arts and culture in economic development (Monterey continues to be a hot spot for national festivals as well as a welcome home for emerging and established artists) and in quality of life (for current residents plus those considering locating to the region), these community leaders helped the Board of Supervisors rethink the emphasis given arts in the county budget.

The result: an increase in funding to more than $300,000 for 2007/08.

Even better, the Supervisors committed to restore and revitalize the historic formula (abandoned in recent years) for ensuring that arts have significant support from the county’s coffers.

According to Paulette Lynch, Executive Director of the Arts Council for Monterey County, the visible involvement of the community foundation was essential to helping county leaders understand the broad-reaching impact of the arts, as well as the value of investing in a creative economy. Following the Board of Supervisors’ action, her note to community foundation colleagues concluded, “Thanks to you all, the arts are back on track in Monterey County and poised to take a leadership role in the creative economy.”

The Community Foundation for Monterey County is a participant in Communities Advancing the Arts, a major funding initiative of The James Irvine Foundation.

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