Arts in Tampa get a break
May 13, 2008 at 2:31 pm by Wayne GarciaMayor Pam Iorio will be telling nonprofit arts leaders this afternoon that she will not cut grants to the arts this year, given the extreme beating that they are taking from the state budget and recessionary pressures.
UPDATE: The city’s news release on this is out, and the funding goes as follows:
The more than $3 million in funding for these organizations will be budgeted as follows: Florida Orchestra ($320,000); Kid City, The Children’s Museum ($36,000); Master Chorale, ($8,000); Museum of Science and Industry ($80,000); Spanish Lyric Theatre ($8,000); Tampa Bay Black Heritage Festival ($16,000); Tampa Bay History Center ($100,000); Florida Museum of Photographic Arts ($12,000); Ybor City State Museum ($80,000); Florida Aquarium ($600,000); H.B. Plant Museum ($91,800); Tampa Theatre ($115,000); Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center ($715,000); Lowry Park Zoo ($450,000); Homeless Coalition ($55,000); Boys & Girls Club ($44,000); Humane Society ($20,000); Mendez Foundation ($120,000); Sister Cities ($8,000); Ybor Chamber ($20,000); and Youth Opportunity Movement ($148,000).
This is not only good news, it is strong leadership.
May 13th, 2008 at 11:35 pm
It does not take strong leadership to spend and spend; strong leadership comes from making hard decisions in hard times. With Tampa’s foreclosure rate soaring and with job losses increasing daily, offering no relief to taxpayers while pandering to special interests is not leadership it is just more of the same. I would love to hear why the city needs to give $500,000 to the greater chamber of commerce or money to the Ybor chamber; independent originations lose their independence by taking this type of city payola.
May 14th, 2008 at 11:07 am
Fred,
The City has a vested interest in job growth and economic development, especially in tough times. Contracting out to the Chambers actually costs less, because they can perform various functions for the City at a lower bottom-line cost.
The rest of the country is competing for higher wage, higher skilled jobs. Is it not in Tampa’s interest to do the same?
May 14th, 2008 at 11:28 am
Contracting out to the Chambers skits the sunshine laws and other legal issues relating to how and where the money is spent.
Sometimes I callously think the chambers exist to launder the money so to speak.
May 14th, 2008 at 11:52 am
Avid Reader,
I beg to disagree. F.S. 288.075 (2) (a) specifically exempts economic development organizations from public records laws. Why “skirt the law” when you do not have to?
The contracts the City and County use to pay the Chambers for their work are completely open to public records.
What is protected is proprietary information. If Tampa is competing with Atlanta for a large project, Tampa certainly would not want Atlanta to know what it is offering, lest Atlanta win the bid.
May 14th, 2008 at 5:03 pm
Thank you for agreeing with me Reality Czech. Economic Development are a real issue as are the Chambers, and others a way to avoid rules and disclosure.
Wabt to dropo 5 grand parting with an exective, go outside the government and find a chamber to do it for you, or any of the institutions you give th emoney to. Just an example.