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GOING TO ORDER THE ARTS AND[Arts & Culture Committee on May 21, 2026.]
CULTURE COMMITTEE MEETING.I'M THE VICE CHAIR OF THE COMMITTEE, MARIO CASTILLO HERE, JOINED BY COUNCIL MEMBER SALLY ALCORN IN CHAMBERS, AS WELL AS STAFF FROM COUNCIL MEMBER TWILA CARTER'S OFFICE STAFF FROM COUNCIL MEMBER JOAQUIN MARTINEZ'S, OFFICE STAFF FROM COUNCIL MEMBER JULIAN RAMIREZ, AND COUNCIL MEMBER TIFFANY THOMAS.
WITH THAT, WE WILL BEGIN OUR FIRST ITEM ON THE AGENDA TODAY IS AN UPDATE FROM THE MAYOR'S OFFICE OF THE ARTS, FROM DIRECTOR MICHELLE LIAL.
UM, I DON'T HAVE A TON TO UPDATE ON.
I DID WANNA SAY THAT, UM, BECAUSE IT'S A QUESTION THAT'S COME UP A FEW TIMES, AND, AND I THINK IT'S RELEVANT AND OF COURSE, VERY TIMELY.
THE, UM, ARTS COMMUNITY, I THINK, HAS CONTINUED TO ASK THIS OFFICE SINCE COMING IN, UH, ABOUT OPPORTUNITIES TO BE MORE CONNECTED TO THE FESTIVITIES HAPPENING, CELEBRATING THE WORLD CUP, AND, UM, YOU KNOW, OPPORTUNITIES FOR ARTISTS AND, AND, UH, DIFFERENT PUBLIC ART OPPORTUNITIES.
AND I THINK THERE'S BEEN A LOT OF REALLY GREAT QUESTIONS.
I DON'T HAVE ALL OF THE ANSWERS, BUT I DID WANT TO SHARE, UH, A FEW THINGS THAT I KNOW AND I CAN SHARE THE, UH, LINKS WITH ALL OF THE COUNCIL OFFICES.
UH, BUT I DO KNOW THAT FOR THE, UM, ORGANIZATIONS, INSTITUTIONS THAT ARE GOING TO HAVE, UH, ARTS PROGRAMMING DURING THE SUMMER THAT YOU WOULD LIKE VISITORS TO BE STEERED TOWARD, THERE IS A MICROSITE THAT HOUSTON FIRST HAS CREATED TO ALLOW YOU TO GO IN AND INPUT YOUR INFORMATION AND, AND, UM, THEY'RE DOING A LOT OF SEO INVESTMENT TO BE ABLE TO DIRECT FOLKS THERE.
UM, SO THAT'S ONE OPPORTUNITY.
AND THEN I BELIEVE IN TODAY OR YESTERDAY, THERE WAS A, A STORY, UM, IN THE PAPER ABOUT ANOTHER PROJECT.
I'M NOT ENTIRELY CERTAIN HOW THAT'S BEING FUNDED, MAYBE THROUGH THE HOST COMMITTEE, BUT A PROJECT, UM, WITH A NUMBER OF DIFFERENT MURALS AROUND TOWN.
AND I DON'T HAVE TONS OF DETAILS, I JUST FOUND OUT ABOUT THAT ONE.
BUT I BELIEVE THERE'S, THERE, IT'S A PROJECT MANAGED BY BATI WHO'S A, A, UM, MURALIST.
AND, UM, THERE'LL BE OPPORTUNITIES FOR LOCAL ARTISTS TO PARTICIPATE IN THOSE.
AND, UM, THERE IS ALSO, I, DAN, CAN YOU TELL ME THE NAME OF THE, THE PROJECT OF THE RIBBON HUNTING? UH, JUST LOW CUT MURAL.
THEY'RE THE EASTON GATEWAY MURAL, UM, PROJECT, WHICH IS ANOTHER VERY COLLABORATIVE PROJECT THAT'S CELEBRATING, UH, THE WORLD CUP.
AND THERE'S A RIBBON CUTTING FOR THAT COMING UP VERY SOON AS WELL.
SO I'LL SHARE ALL OF THOSE DATES AND DETAILS WITH THE COUNCIL OFFICES VIA EMAIL.
BUT I, I JUST WANTED TO SAY THAT I KNOW THAT I RECOGNIZE THE COMMUNITIES' BEEN ASKING THOSE QUESTIONS, AND I'VE BEEN ASKING THOSE QUESTIONS, AND AS I'M RECEIVING INFORMATION, TRYING TO GET IT OUT TO YOU ALL.
UM, AND THEN BEYOND THAT, I, I DON'T WANNA DELAY US 'CAUSE I KNOW THERE'LL PROBABLY BE LOTS OF, OF QUESTIONS.
AND THIS, UH, PRESENTATION WILL TAKE A LITTLE BIT OF TIME SO WE CAN MOVE INTO THAT.
WE CAN ROLL RIGHT INTO THE JOINT PRESENTATION WITH THE, UH, HOUSTON ARTS ALLIANCE ON THE HOT CONTRACT UPDATE AND TIMELINES.
UM, TAYLOR WILL BE JOINING YOU FOR THAT.
AND THANK YOU FOR THE UPDATE AROUND THE ACTIVITIES WITH, UH, OPPORTUNITIES RELATED TO FIFA.
I KNOW FOLKS ARE EXCITED ABOUT THAT.
AND THE RIBBON CUTTING IS ACTUALLY, UH, IN DISTRICT H, SO THAT'LL BE HAPPENING ON SATURDAY.
AND I KNOW THE ARTS COMMUNITY IS VERY EXCITED TO HAVE THIS INFLUX OF VISITORS AND BE ABLE TO REALLY SHOWCASE ALL THAT HOUSTON HAS TO OFFER.
SO HOWEVER I CAN DO WHATEVER I CAN DO TO HELP, I, I AM HERE TO DO THAT.
UM, BEFORE WE DIVE INTO THE SLIDES, I WANNA JUST SAY A LITTLE BIT ABOUT, UM, AND YOU CAN PROBABLY GO TO THE NEXT SLIDE, BUT, UM, I, I WANNA JUST SAY A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THE, UM, HOTEL OCCUPANCY TAX PROGRAM, WHICH IS, UH, AS YOU ALL KNOW, IT IS A, A CONTRACT OF THE MAYOR'S OFFICE OF THE ARTS.
IT IS A PROGRAM THAT HAS EXISTED FOR MANY YEARS.
THESE ARE LOCAL HOTEL OCCUPANCY TAX DOLLARS THAT THE STATE SPECIFICALLY ALLOWS VIA STATE LEGISLATION, MUNICIPALITIES TO INVEST IN THE ARTS, UM, WITH THE UNDERSTANDING THAT THE ARTS IS A DRIVER OF TOURISM, AND THAT IT WOULD GENERATE FURTHER HOTEL OCCUPANCY, TAX DOLLARS.
AND SO THERE, THERE'S A NUMBER OF PARAMETERS THAT ARE LAID OUT BY THE STATE, UM, INCLUDING, YOU KNOW, WHAT PERCENTAGE IS ALLOWED AND, UM, AND HOW THAT'S
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ABLE TO BE EXECUTED.AND SO THE CITY OF HOUSTON ALLOCATES, UH, THE MAXIMUM ALLOWABLE THE 19.3% TO THE ARTS FROM ITS LOCAL HOT.
AND, UH, IN DOING SO, WE CONTRACT WITH HOUSTON ARTS ALLIANCE, WHICH IS A NONPROFIT ORGANIZATION WHO WAS ESTE, WHICH WAS ESTABLISHED 20 YEARS AGO NOW, WHERE THEY'RE CELEBRATING THEIR 20TH ANNIVERSARY THIS YEAR OUT OF THE REORGANIZATION AND RESTRUCTURE OF SEVERAL LOCAL MUNICIPAL ARTS AGENCIES.
UM, AND IN REALLY WITH THE IDEA THAT THAT, UM, THIS WORK COULD BE MORE COMMUNITY CENTRIC AND MORE EFFICIENTLY EXECUTED ON IF THERE WAS THIS NONPROFIT ADMINISTRATIVE PARTNER TO RUN VERY TRANSPARENT, UM, FAIR GRANTS PROCESSES ON OUR BEHALF.
AND SO THAT'S WHAT HOUSTON ARTS ALLIANCE DOES FOR US.
SPECIFIC TO THIS CONTRACT, WE ALSO HAVE ANOTHER CONTRACT WITH HOUSTON ARTS ALLIANCE, BUT SPECIFIC TO HOT, THAT'S WHAT THEY DO FOR US.
UM, FROM A TIMELINE STANDPOINT, THIS WAS A FIVE YEAR CONTRACT WITH TWO ONE YEAR EXTENSION OPTIONS, BOTH OF WHICH WERE EXECUTED, UH, BY THIS ADMINISTRATION.
AND THE FINAL EXTENSION OPTION EXPIRES AT THE END OF THIS YEAR.
HOWEVER, BECAUSE OF THE, UH, LEAD TIME NEEDED FOR HAA TO RUN ITS GRANTS PROCESSES, WE NEED TO GET THAT SECURED PRETTY QUICKLY THIS SUMMER.
AND SO, UM, WE'RE GOING THROUGH THIS PROCESS.
WE'VE HAD A NUMBER OF STAKEHOLDER CONVERSATIONS BETWEEN MYSELF AND TAYLOR, UM, WITH DIFFERENT, UM, PARTS OF THE SECTOR.
WE'VE MET WITH THE, UM, LEADERSHIP OF THE LARGE INSTITUTIONS THAT MOSTLY SIT IN OUR THEATER AND MUSEUM DISTRICTS.
AND, UH, WE HAVE ALSO MET WITH THE SEVEN CULTURAL DISTRICTS AND THEIR LEADERSHIP.
WE'VE MET INDIVIDUALLY WITH SOME OF YOUR OFFICES.
WE WILL BE REACHING OUT TO MEET INDIVIDUALLY WITH ALL OF THE COUNCIL OFFICES.
UM, AND WE'VE MET WITH A NUMBER OF DIFFERENT ARTISTS AND COMMUNITY MEMBERS AND REALLY KIND OF WORKSHOP THIS THROUGH A LOT OF FEEDBACK.
SO I HOPE THAT WE ARE, YOU KNOW, WE, WE HAVE A PRETTY GOOD, UM, PLAN IN PLACE AND, AND IT DOESN'T LOOK VASTLY DIFFERENT FROM WHAT IT LOOKED LIKE BEFORE.
UH, IF WE CAN GO TO THE NEXT SLIDE, NEXT SLIDE, PLEASE.
I GUESS I, I'LL TOUCH ON THIS FOR A SECOND.
THE, THIS IS JUST THE STRUCTURE OF HOW IT WORKS.
THE HOTELS COLLECT THE, THE DOLLARS VIA HOTEL OCCUPANCY TAX REMIT THEM TO HOUSTON FIRST.
HOUSTON FIRST MAKES QUARTERLY PAYMENTS TO THE CITY, AND THE CITY DEDICATES, AS I SAID, THAT 19.3% THE CITY RETAINS AS PART OF THE CONTRACT.
AND AS IS BEING PROPOSED UNDER THE NEW CONTRACT, THE CITY RETAINS 7% TO SUPPORT SOME OF THE ARTS AND CULTURAL INITIATIVES THAT HAPPEN INSIDE THE CITY, INCLUDING WORK IN MY OFFICE AS WELL AS THE OFFICE OF SPECIAL EVENTS AND TRADE IN INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS.
AND, AND SOMEONE WAS JUST ASKING ME A FEW MINUTES AGO ABOUT THE CONSULAR COURT PROGRAM AND THE SISTER CITIES PROGRAM AND SUMMIT.
SO A NUMBER OF THOSE INITIATIVES THAT, UM, HAVE QUALIFYING ACTIVITIES ACCORDING TO THE STATE STATUTE, UM, ARE, ARE SUPPORTED.
AND THAT'S WHERE THAT 7% GETS ALLOCATED.
UM, AND THEN THE REST OF IT GOES TO HOUSTON ARTS ALLIANCE TO ADMINISTER THE GRANTS PROCESS.
UM, SO IF WE COULD GO TO THE NEXT SLIDE, I JUST, I THINK THIS SLIDE IS REALLY, REALLY IMPORTANT BECAUSE I THINK SOMETIMES, YOU KNOW, ESPECIALLY AS WE'RE HAVING DIFFICULT BUDGET CONVERSATIONS, THERE IS, UH, THERE ARE QUESTIONS ABOUT WHY WE WOULD INVEST RESOURCES IN ONE PLACE AND NOT ANOTHER, AND WHY WE WOULD INVEST THESE RESOURCES HERE.
AND SO I JUST WANNA CALL TO EVERYONE'S ATTENTION, THE RETURN ON INVESTMENT, AND THIS IS SPECIFIC TO THE HOT DOLLARS, THIS DOES NOT COVER THE FULL SCOPE OF ECONOMIC IMPACT OF ARTS AND CULTURE IN HOUSTON, BUT THIS IS SPECIFIC TO THE HOT DOLLARS THAT THE CITY ALLOCATES.
AND SO, YOU KNOW, TO, TO GENERATE $28 PER DOLLAR IN ECONOMIC ACTIVITY FEELS LIKE A PRETTY GOOD RETURN ON INVESTMENT.
UM, I ALSO THOUGHT IT WAS, UM, PRETTY NOTEWORTHY THAT THAT 68% OF THE PROGRAMMING ATTENDED THROUGH THESE FUNDED PROGRAMS WAS, UH, WAS FREE PROGRAMMING.
SO I THINK, YOU KNOW, THERE'S SOME REALLY INCREDIBLE STUFF THAT'S BEING SUPPORTED ALL ACROSS HOUSTON VIA THESE RESOURCES.
AND I THINK THAT'S REALLY, I JUST WANTED TO KIND OF LAY THE, UM, THE FOUNDATION FOR, UM, WHY WE DO THIS, WHAT IT IS, AND, AND, UM, I WILL TURN IT OVER TO TAYLOR NOW TO START TALKING ABOUT WHAT'S BEING PROPOSED.
ALRIGHT, SO ON THIS SLIDE, YOU'LL ACTUALLY BE ABLE TO SEE THE INCREASE IN GRANT APPLICATIONS, UM, IN HAAS'S ADMINISTRATIVE WORKLOAD SINCE THE START OF THE CURRENT CONTRACT IN 2019.
UM, SO APPLICATION NUMBERS HAVE GROWN SIGNIFICANTLY.
UM, WHEN THE CURRENT CONTRACT STARTED
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IN 2019, HA RECEIVED, UH, APPROXIMATELY 554 APPLICATIONS THAT YEAR.AND IN THE MOST RECENT YEAR BEING 2025, HAA RECEIVED 883 APPLICATIONS, WHICH REPRESENTS A 59% INCREASE IN APPLICATIONS SUBMITTED.
UM, OF COURSE, THE VOLUME OF APPLICANTS SEEKING ACCESS TO HOT FUNDED GRANT OPPORTUNITIES, UM, HAS GROWN, WHICH MEANS MORE STAFF TIME IS REQUIRED FOR APPLICANT QUESTIONS AND TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE ELIGIBILITY, UM, VERIFICATION AND REVIEW, APPLICATION TROUBLESHOOTING, PANEL PREPARATION, UM, AND OF COURSE COMMUNICATIONS AND FOLLOW UP.
IN THE NEXT LINE, YOU'LL BE ABLE TO SEE, UM, HOW GRANT AWARDS HAVE INCREASED SINCE THE START OF THE CONTRACT.
SO IN 20 20, 20 19, THERE WERE 329 CITY FUNDED GRANTS AWARDED, AND IN 2025, THERE WERE 419 CITY FUNDED GRANTS AWARDED.
UM, SO THAT REPRESENTS A 27% INCREASE IN GRANTS AWARDED BY WAY OF THESE HOT FUNDS.
UH, MORE GRANTS MEANS MORE CONTRACTS, MORE PAYMENT PROCESSING, MORE REPORTING, AND MORE COMPLIANCE OVERSIGHT.
UM, SO THESE INCREASES ARE NOT JUST NUMERICAL.
AGAIN, WHAT WE'RE TRYING TO REALLY SHOW HERE IS THAT IT CREATES MORE WORK, UM, ACROSS THE FULL GRANT LIFE CYCLE.
AND THEN SPEAKING OF CONTRACTS IN THAT LAST LINE, YOU'LL BE ABLE TO SEE CONTRACTS UNDER ACTIVE MANAGEMENT, UM, WHICH HAVE ALSO INCREASED SUBSTANTIALLY IN 2019.
HAA WAS MANAGING APPROXIMATELY 600 ACTIVE CONTRACTS.
AND NOW IN 2025, WE'RE MANAGING, UM, CLOSER TO 900 ACTIVE CONTRACTS.
THAT REPRESENTS A 50% INCREASE IN CONTRACTS, UM, UNDER ACTIVE MANAGEMENT.
SO WITH THIS, YOU KNOW, VOLUME THAT'S GROWING, UM, AGAIN, HA'S OPERATIONAL WORKLOAD IS, IS TRYING TO KEEP UP, WE'VE GOT MORE FIRST TIME APPLICANTS REQUIRING SUPPORT, MORE COMPLIANCE AND REPORTING COMMITMENTS, UM, MORE COMMUNITY INFORMED PROCESSES THAT WE'VE ALSO INTEGRATED INTO OUR WORK BY WAY OF THE GRANT WORKING GROUPS AND PANEL WORKING GROUPS THAT SUPPORT OUR ANNUAL GRANT EVALUATION YEAR OVER YEAR, UM, AND SIGNIFICANTLY MORE PUBLIC TRANSPARENCY EXPECTATIONS AND RIGHTFULLY SO.
UM, I WANTED TO ALSO JUST LAY OUT THE GOALS OF THE PROPOSED CONTRACT BE BEFORE WE GET INTO, UM, SPECIFIC CHANGES.
UH, THESE UPDATES WERE DESIGNED REALLY TO STRENGTHEN STABILITY, TRANSPARENCY, AND SUSTAINABILITY OF, OF THE CITY'S HOT FUNDED ARTS GRANT MAKING SYSTEM, WHILE MAINTAINING CONTINUITY, UM, IN THE FLOW OF DOLLARS TO THE COMMUNITY.
UM, SO THE FIRST GOAL IS REALLY TO ALIGN, HA'S ADMIN FEE WITH THE CURRENT PROGRAM SCALE AND COMPLEXITY.
UM, AS THE LAST SLIDE SHOWED, OUR ADMIN RESPONSIBILITIES HAVE GROWN SIGNIFICANTLY, UM, AS APPLICATION VOLUME SUPPORT NEEDS COMPLIANCE REQUIREMENTS AND PROGRAM DELIVERY DEMANDS HAVE INCREASED.
UM, BUT RELATED TO THAT GOAL NUMBER TWO, WE WANNA ENSURE THAT, UM, SUPPORT WE'RE SUPPORTING THE ADMINISTRATIVE CAPACITY NEEDED WITHOUT UNDERMINING COMMUNITY INVESTMENT.
UM, AND SO THE PROPOSED STRUCTURE IS INTENDED TO STABILIZE HA A'S ABILITY TO ADMINISTER THE PROGRAMS, WHILE ALSO PRESERVING THE CITY'S COMMITMENT TO DISTRIBUTING THESE HOT FUNDS TO THE, UM, HOUSTON'S ARTS AND CULTURAL COMMUNITY.
SO, UM, YOU WILL SEE THAT THE STRUCTURE MOVES HA'S FEE OUT OF THE DISTRIBUTABLE POOL, SO THAT WHILE THE POOL IS TECHNICALLY SMALLER, IT'S ALSO BEING DIVIDED AMONG FEWER CATEGORIES, ALLOWING FOR MAJOR COMMUNITY FACING FUNDING STREAMS TO REMAIN STABLE AND IN MOST CASES SEE A MODEST INCREASE.
UM, GOAL NUMBER THREE, WE WANTED TO BETTER ALIGN THE CITY'S INITIATIVE GRANT PROGRAM WITH THE APPLICANTS IT'S INTENDED TO SERVE.
UM, SO THE CITY'S INITIATIVE PROGRAM, IT'S NOT GOING AWAY.
IT'S BEING MOVED INTO THE UNDER $10 MILLION CATEGORY, ENSURING THAT THE PROGRAM REMAINS ALIGNED WITH THE INDIVIDUAL ARTISTS CREATIVES, UM, AND SMALL TO MIDSIZE ORGANIZATIONS WHOSE AWARD OR MAXIMUMS ARE SMALLER.
UM, THE MAJORITY OF THE ALLOCATION FOR C'S INITIATIVE IS GOING TO THE UNDER $10 MILLION CATEGORY WITH SOME REMAINING PORTIONS THAT YOU'LL SEE GOING TOWARDS HA HA'S ADMIN FEE, THE OVER $10 MILLION CATEGORY AND MILLER THEATER, SO THAT THERE IS AN OPPORTUNITY TO ENSURE THAT WE'RE DISTRIBUTING ALL OF THE FUNDS THAT WERE PREVIOUSLY ALLOCATED TO THAT, UM, PROGRAM.
UH, THE FOURTH GOAL IS REALLY ABOUT, AGAIN, PROVIDING SMALL FUNDING INCREASES TO SUPPORT FOR ORGANIZATIONS, SUPPORT FOR ARTISTS AND CREATIVE INDIVIDUALS, AND OUR FESTIVAL GRANT PROGRAMS, WHICH WE REFER TO AS OUR ANNUAL GRANT PROGRAMS, UM, TO HELP STRENGTHEN EXISTING FUNDING PATHWAYS WITHOUT DISRUPTING THE OVERALL GRANT MAKING FRAMEWORK.
AND I THINK LARGELY TO, UM, YOU KNOW, MICHELLE'S EARLIER POINT, WE REALLY WANTED TO ENSURE THAT, YOU KNOW, CONSIDERING THESE UPDATES,
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YOU KNOW, THEY WERE DESIGNED TO AVOID DISRUPTION, PRESERVE EXISTING GRANT CYCLES, AND ENSURE THAT DOLLARS CONTINUE TO REACH THE COMMUNITY IN A TIMELY AND PREDICTABLE MANNER.LET'S GET INTO TO HOW THIS SHAKES OUT BY WAY OF THE BUDGET.
SO THIS CHART COMPARES THE CURRENT HOT ALLOCATION STRUCTURE WITH THE PROPOSED CONTRACT STRUCTURE USING A TOTAL HOT REVENUE EXAMPLE OF 101 MILLION, UM, WHICH IS BASED ON THE ROUNDED HOT ACTUAL AMOUNT FROM 2025, UM, AND RESULTS IN A, UH, UH, IN THE ARTS AND CULTURAL SHARE OF HOT, WHICH WAS APPROXIMATELY $19.4 MILLION.
SO UNDER THE CURRENT CONTRACT, THE CITY OF HOUSTON, 7% ADMIN FEE IS TAKEN FROM THE ARTS AND CULTURAL SHARE OF HOT FIRST.
AFTER THAT DEDUCTION, THE REMAINING AMOUNT BECOMES THE ALLOCATED HOT POOL, WHICH IS APPROXIMATELY 18.1 MILLION.
IN THIS EXAMPLE, FROM THAT ALLOCATED POOL, UH, FUNDS ARE THEN DISTRIBUTED ACROSS FIVE GRANT CATEGORIES.
SO WE HAD, UM, 36% GOING TO OPERATING GRANTS, UM, FOR ORGANIZATIONS AND ARTISTS WITH BUDGETS UNDER $10 MILLION.
SO THAT IS WHERE SUPPORT FOR ORGANIZATIONS CATEGORIES ONE AND TWO, SUPPORT FOR ARTISTS AND CREATIVE INDIVIDUALS, UM, FESTIVAL AND LET CREATIVITY HAPPEN CURRENTLY SIT.
AND THEN YOU HAVE 36% GOING TO, UM, OPERATING GRANTS FOR ORGANIZATIONS WITH BUDGETS OVER $10 MILLION.
THERE'S A 16.5, UH, PERCENT ALLOCATION TO MILLER OUTDOOR THEATER, A 2.5% ALLOCATION TO CITY'S INITIATIVE, AND A 9% ALLOCATION TO HA'S ADMIN FEE.
SO IN THE CURRENT STRUCTURE HA'S ADMIN FEE IS PART OF THE ALLOCATED HOT DISTRIBUTION.
THIS MEANS HA'S FEE IS CALCULATED FROM THE SAME POOL THAT IS ALSO USED TO FUND THE GRANT CATEGORIES.
AND MILLER OUTDOOR THEATER SIMPLY PUT ARTS AND CULTURE SHARE OF HOT MINUS THE CITY'S 7% EQUALS ALLOCATED HOT, AND THEN THE ALLOCATED HOT IS DIVIDED AMONG THE EXISTING CONTRACT CATEGORIES, INCLUDING HA'S ADMIN FEE.
NOW, UNDER THE PROPOSED CONTRACT, THE CITY'S 7% ADMIN FEE WOULD STILL BE TAKEN FROM THE ARTS AND CULTURAL SHARE OF HOT, HOWEVER, HA'S 9% ADMIN FEE WOULD ALSO BE TAKEN FROM THE ARTS AND CULTURAL SHARE OF HOT BEFORE DETERMINING THE FINAL ALLOCATED HOT POOL.
SO IN THIS EXAMPLE, YOU SEE THAT RESULTS IN HA'S ADMIN FEE BEING APPROXIMATELY 1.7 MILLION IN A FINAL ALLOCATED HOT POOL OF APPROXIMATELY 16.3 MILLION.
UM, SO PUTTING THIS A LITTLE BIT MORE SIMPLY, ARTS AND CULTURE SHARE OF HOT IN THE PROPOSED CONTRACT MINUS THE CITY 7% MINUS HAA 9% WOULD EQUAL THE ALLOCATED HOT POOL.
UM, AND THE REMAINING ALLOCATION FROM THAT ALLOCATED HOT POOL WOULD BE DISTRIBUTED ACROSS ALL OF OUR PROGRAMMATIC CATEGORIES.
SO THE PRIMARY DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE CURRENT AND PROPOSED CONTRACT IS WHERE HA'S ADMINISTRATIVE FEE IS CALCULATED WITHIN THE FUNDING STRUCTURE UNDER THE CURRENT CONTRACT HA'S FEE IS INCLUDED AS ONE OF THE CATEGORIES WITHIN THE ALLOCATED HOT POOL UNDER THE PROPOSED CONTRACT HA'S FEE IS CALCULATED BEFORE THE ALLOCATED HOT POOL IS DISTRIBUTED.
WE FELT LIKE THIS CREATES A CLEANER STRUCTURE BY SEPARATING THE COST OF ADMINISTERING THE CONTRACT FROM THE ALLOCATIONS THAT ARE ACTUALLY GOING OUT INTO THE COMMUNITY.
THIS APPROACH ALSO PROVIDES HAA WITH MORE PREDICTABLE ADMIN SUPPORT TO MANAGE SIGNIFICANTLY INCREASED WORKLOAD, UM, COMPLIANCE REQUIREMENTS, APPLICANT SUPPORT, ALL OF THE THINGS THAT I WAS SORT OF NAMING BEFORE.
ANOTHER IMPORTANT CLARIFICATION, AND THIS WAS TIED TO ONE OF THE GOALS, UM, IS THAT THE CITY'S INITIATIVE GRANT PROGRAM IS NOT GOING AWAY.
RATHER, THE CITY'S INITIATIVE ALLOCATION IS BEING FOLDED INTO THE BROADER ALLOCATION STRUCTURE WITH THE MAJORITY OF THOSE FUNDS MOVING INTO THE UNDER $10 MILLION OPERATING GRANTS CATEGORY.
THIS CHANGE IS INTENDED TO ENSURE THAT FUNDS HISTORICALLY ASSOCIATED WITH CITY'S INITIATIVE CONTINUE TO SUPPORT THE ARTS COMMUNITY, WHILE ALSO IMPROVING THE LIKELIHOOD THAT THOSE DOLLARS ARE FULLY SPENT AND DISTRIBUTED.
THE REMAINING PORTIONS OF THE FORMER CITY'S INITIATIVE ALLOCATION ARE BEING REDISTRIBUTED ACROSS, HA'S ADMIN FEE OPERATING GRANTS TO THE ORGANIZATIONS OVER 10 MILLION AND MILLER OUTDOOR THEATER.
UM, SO TO REITERATE, THE CITY'S INITIATIVE PROGRAM IS NOT GOING AWAY.
HAA WILL STILL DISTRIBUTE CITY'S INITIATIVE GRANTS AT ROUGHLY THE SAME LEVEL.
IT HAS IN RECENT YEARS, APPROXIMATELY $300,000 ANNUALLY.
THE PROPOSED CHANGE SIMPLY REMOVES CITY'S INITIATIVE AS A SEPARATE FIXED PERCENTAGE LINE ITEM AND FOLDS
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THOSE DOLLARS INTO THE BROADER ALLOCATION STRUCTURE, GIVING HAA CONTINUED FLEXIBILITY TO SUPPORT ELIGIBLE PRO UH, PROJECTS WHILE HELPING TO ENSURE HOT FUNDS ARE FULLY SPENT.UM, SO THIS IS JUST A DIFFERENT VISUAL TO TO SEE THE, UM, THE SPREADSHEET THAT WE JUST PRESENTED.
AND REALLY WHAT I, WHAT I WANNA HIGHLIGHT HERE IS THE STRUCTURAL CHANGES AND HOW THAT SHAKES OUT.
IF YOU LOOK AT IT BY WAY OF THIS PIE.
SO THIS IS REALLY JUST TO HIGHLIGHT THAT ALLOCATED HOT DISTRIBUTION POOL THAT I WAS REFERRING TO.
UM, AGAIN, UNDER THE CURRENT STRUCTURE, YOU HAD THE ARTS AND CULTURE SHARE OF HOT AT 19.3% MINUS THE CITY, UH, OF HOUSTON'S ADMIN FEE OF 7%, WHICH EQUALED THIS ALLOCATED HOT.
AND THIS PIE BREAKS DOWN HOW, UM, THE, THE FUNDS WERE SPLIT WITHIN THE PIE OF THE ALLOCATED HOT POOL.
UM, AND YOU'LL SEE THAT HA A'S FEE IS INCLUDED IN THAT VERSUS IN THE PROPOSED STRUCTURE, THE ARTS AND CULTURE SHARE OF HOT 19.3% MINUS THE CITY'S, UM, 7% ADMIN FEE AND HAA 9% FEE WILL DETERMINE THE ALLOCATED HOT POOL.
AND YOU'LL SEE HOW THAT IS BEING DISTRIBUTED.
CITY'S INITIATIVE, AGAIN, DOES NOT HAVE ITS OWN SEPARATE, LIKE CARVE OUT IN THIS PIE BECAUSE THE PROGRAM IS BEING FOLDED INTO THE UNDER $10 MILLION CATEGORY.
SO HERE WE JUST REALLY WANTED TO, UM, HIGHLIGHT AND TALK ABOUT HOW HA A'S ADMIN FEE SUPPORTS FAR MORE THAN JUST PERSONNEL COSTS, UM, IT FUNDS THE INFRASTRUCTURE REQUIRED TO DELIVER A HIGH VOLUME PUBLIC FACING GRANT MAKING SYSTEM WITH TRANSPARENCY, ACCESSIBILITY, AND ACCOUNTABILITY.
UM, THIS INCLUDES THE GRANT APPLICATION PORTAL, WE MANAGE THAT AND IT DOES HAVE SUBSCRIPTION COSTS AND DEVELOPER COSTS THAT WE HAVE TO CONTRIBUTE TO YEAR OVER YEAR.
UM, COMMUNICATIONS AND OUTREACH TRANSLATION, APPLICANT WORKSHOPS, TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE PANELIST, HONORARIUM, SO THE COMMUNITY PANELISTS THAT WE ACTUALLY INVITE TO, UM, READ AND SCORE ALL OF THE 883 APPLICATIONS WE RECEIVE IN A YEAR, THEIR STIPENDS GET PAID OUT OF OUR A, UH, ADMIN FEE.
AND SO DO THE PARTICIPANTS WHO, UM, SUPPORT OUR GRANT WORKING GROUP AND PANEL WORKING GROUPS, UM, WHO ARE ANNUALLY EVALUATING AND ASSESSING OUR GRANT MAKING, UM, PROCESS, THEIR STIPENDS ALSO COME OUT OF HA'S ADMIN FEE.
SO JUST REALLY WANTING TO CLARIFY THAT THERE ARE EVEN LINE ITEMS WITHIN OUR ADMIN FEE THAT ARE STILL GOING OUT TO THE COMMUNITY BY WAY OF THE PANELS AND WORKING GROUPS, UM, DATA TRACKING, COMPLIANCE, DOCUMENTATION, REPORTING SYSTEMS, ALL OF THOSE, UM, UH, LINE ITEMS ARE SUPPORTED BY WAY OF THE ADMIN FEE.
UM, THESE INVESTMENTS ARE ESSENTIAL TO ENSURING THAT, YOU KNOW, THESE HOT FUNDED GRANT OPPORTUNITIES ARE BROADLY ACCESSIBLE, FAIRLY REVIEWED, UM, AND RESPONSIBLY ADMINISTERED ON BEHALF OF THE CITY.
IN CLOSING, I REALLY, YOU KNOW, I I WANT TO REITERATE THAT THESE PROPOSED CHANGES ARE NOT ABOUT CHANGING THE PURPOSE OF THE FUNDING SYSTEM.
THEY'RE ABOUT STRENGTHENING THE INFRASTRUCTURE THAT ALLOWS THE SYSTEM TO WORK.
UM, THEY PROTECT THE CITY'S INVESTMENT IN, HA'S GRANT MAKING CAPACITY AND PROVE TRANSPARENCY AND PRESERVE CONTINUITY FOR APPLICANTS AND GRANTEES, WHILE ALSO MAINTAINING STRONG FUNDING STREAMS BY WAY OF OUR GRANTS INTO MILLER OUTDOOR THEATER, UM, AND MODERNIZING THE TOOLS NEEDED TO ADMINISTER PUBLIC ARTS FUNDING RESPONSIBLY AT TODAY'S SCALE.
THANK YOU BOTH FOR THE PRESENTATION.
I, I APPRECIATE THE THOROUGHNESS, UH, WALKING THROUGH THE PROPOSED CHANGES, ALSO BREAKING DOWN HOW THAT ADMIN FEE IS, UH, UTILIZED AND OTHER WAYS THAT IT SUPPORTS THE HONORARIUM OUTREACH, ET CETERA.
ONE OF THE QUESTIONS I HAD WAS ON THE CITY INITIATIVES, THE 2.5% HISTORICALLY, HAS ALL OF THE 2.5% BEEN UTILIZED, UH, FOR GRANTS? YES, BUT NOT ALWAYS VIA COMPETITIVE GRANT CYCLE, BUT THIS WILL ALLOW IT TO, LET'S SAY YOU DON'T HAVE, UM, UH, SUFFICIENT APPLICATIONS IN A YEAR TO DRAW ALL THE, THE MONEY DOWN.
IT WILL ALLOW IT TO STILL GO TO SUPPORT ORGANIZATIONS UNDER 10 MILLION.
NOW IT CAN FILTER INTO THAT BROADER POOL FOR THE ORGANIZATIONS.
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CHANGING THE STRUCTURE IS JUST MOVING THE 9% ADMIN ABOVE THE LINE BASICALLY BEFORE YOU GET YOUR FUNDING TO, TO, UM, DISTRIBUTE.YES, WE'RE MOVING HA'S FEE ABOVE THE LINE AND THEN FOLDING CITY'S INITIATIVE INTO THE UNDER $10 MILLION CAPITAL.
GIMME AN EXAMPLE OF CITY'S INITIATIVE PROJECT.
OH, SO I WOULD SAY, UH, COUNCIL MEMBER RAMIREZ IS NOT HERE, BUT I KNOW THERE'S A GROUP THAT THAT HE'S FAMILIAR WITH THAT, UM, IT'S A MUSICAL GROUP AND I THINK THEY USE THEIR CITIES INITIATIVE SUPPORT, UM, TO RECORD AND OR RELEASE A NEW ALBUM.
IT'S LIKE SPECIALIZED OH YEAH, I REMEMBER HIM, HIM TALKING ABOUT THAT.
YEAH, SO IT'S A SPECIALIZED GRANT PROGRAM THAT'S BASED ON THREE FUNDING AREAS.
ONE IS, UM, RESILIENCE, ANOTHER IS CULTURAL NEIGHBORHOOD DESTINATIONS, AND THE THIRD IS CONFERENCE TOURISM.
SO ANY PROJECT, UM, BY WAY OF THE GRANT PROGRAM THAT IS APPLYING FOR FUNDS, THEIR PROJECT NEEDS TO FIT WITHIN ONE OF THOSE THREE FUNDING AREAS.
SO I UNDERSTAND WHAT YOU'RE DOING THERE.
WHAT'S KIND OF THE YEAR OVER YEAR INCREASE IN YOUR GRANT FUNDING? I MEAN IT, I KNOW IT GOES RIGHT ALONG WITH HOT INCREASES, BUT OVER THE LAST FEW YEARS, WHAT'S BEEN THE, UM, SO IN WHAT YOU EXPECT 2019 EXPECT? WE WERE DISTRIBUTING ABOUT 12 MILLION ANNUALLY AND THIS MOST RECENT YEAR WE DISTRIBUTED ABOUT $16.1 MILLION ANNUALLY OR FOR THAT YEAR.
AND YOU WANT, YOU WANNA, I MEAN OBVIOUSLY YOUR NUMBERS AT THE VERY BEGINNING SHOWED THAT, UM, YOU NEED MORE ADMIN SUPPORT, RIGHT? I MEAN, IS THAT GROWING IN WITH THE, WITH THE INCREASE, IS THAT GROWING TO THE EXTENT YOU NEED? IS 9% THE RIGHT NUMBER? UM, IN ORDER FOR US TO, AGAIN, NOT LIKE POOL MONEY FROM THE COMMUNITY INVESTMENT, IT WAS THE HIGHEST WE COULD GO.
UM, I DO THINK IT, YOU KNOW, IN TALKING TO MICHELLE, WE'RE THINKING OF OTHER WAYS THAT WE CAN, UM, HELP SUPPORT THE GRANT MAKING INFRASTRUCTURE WITHOUT HAVING TO TAP INTO, YOU KNOW, FUNDS THAT REALLY SHOULD BE GOING OUT INTO THE COMMUNITY.
WHAT'S YOUR ANNUAL FUNDRAISING LIKE? PRIVATE FUNDRAISING? UH, IT VARIES FROM YEAR TO YEAR, AND IT ALSO GOES TO SUPPORT OTHER PROGRAMS THAT HAA OFFERS THAT AREN'T UNDER CITY CONTRACTS THAT UNDERSTOOD, BUT GIVE ME A BALLPARK OF WHAT, IT COULD BE ANYWHERE FROM, UM, 300 TO, TO 500,000.
UM, BUT AGAIN, MAJORITY OF THOSE FUNDS DO NOT GO TO SUPPORT OUR HOT WORK.
THEY GO TO SUPPORT LIKE OUR DISASTER SERVICES PROGRAM THAT'S NOT UNDER CITY CONTRACT.
CAN I ASK ONE MORE OR I'LL SURE GET BACK IN, UM, THE 7% CITY FEE, HAS THAT ALWAYS BEEN 7%? IT'S ALWAYS IS, UM, SINCE THE CONTRACT HAS BEEN STRUCTURED IN THE WAY YES, I BELIEVE IT'S ALWAYS BEEN SINCE IT EXISTED.
AND THAT PAYS FOR YOU? SO
AND OF COURSE AS, SO THAT'S WHERE THE SPECIAL EVENTS MONEY IS.
SOME OF THAT IS IN THERE AS WELL AS THE TRADE IN INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS FOR QUALIFYING EXPENDITURES THERE.
AND WHERE ARE WE WITH, UM, GETTING THE NEW CONTRACT IN THE WORKS? SO WE ARE, UM, JUST WAITING FOR, UH, Y'ALL TO FINISH THE VERY IMPORTANT BUSINESS THAT YOU HAVE IN FRONT OF YOU NOW,
AND I THINK WE'RE, UH, TARGETING POTENTIALLY TO INTRODUCE IT TO COUNCIL IMMEDIATELY AFTER THAT OR AROUND THAT TIME DEPENDING ON, UM, YOU KNOW, HOW IT'S GOING AND WHETHER WE'VE HAD ENOUGH TIME TO BRIEF EVERYONE ON COUNCIL.
BUT, UM, THAT'S WHAT WE'RE AIMING FOR.
AND AGAIN, THAT IS ESSENTIALLY TO AVOID DISRUPTING THE GRANTS CYCLE.
I UNDERSTAND, UM, THE PROPOSED CHANGES HERE TO THE, THE ADMINISTRATIVE, UM, PORTION.
ARE THERE ANY CHANGES TO THE LENGTH? ARE Y'ALL LOOKING AT A LONGER TERM CONTRACT? IS THAT GONNA HELP, UH, BETTER ADMINISTER THE GRANTS? I ACTUALLY SPOKE TO, UM, PROCUREMENT ABOUT THAT JUST TO ENSURE THAT WE WERE ALSO IN KEEPING WITH WHAT, YOU KNOW, STANDARDS AND GUIDELINES, UM, THEY WOULD LIKE TO SEE.
AND, UM, WE ARE GOING TO CONTINUE WITH, WE ARE GONNA PROPOSE THE, THE SAME TERM I SHOULD SAY, THAT WE HAVE NOW, WHICH IS A FIVE YEAR CONTRACT WITH THOSE TWO ONE YEAR EXTENSION OPTIONS.
I MEAN, I KNOW SOME OF THE CONTRACTS THAT WE ARE DOING NOW ARE MOVING TO SHORTER WITH MORE EXTENSION OPTIONS.
UM, THIS DOES ALLOW FOR MORE STABILITY FOR THE PROGRAM AND FOR THE SECTOR.
THANK YOU STAFF FROM COUNCIL MEMBER RAMIREZ.
UM, SO WOULD THIS CHANGE REQUIRE SORT OF AN ADDITIONAL ORDINANCE ABOUT IT OR JUST A CONTRACT? JUST A CONTRACT.
AND SO IF I WAS READING IT RIGHT, UM,
[00:30:01]
IT WOULD BE EXPECTED IN THE NEXT YEAR TO BE AN ADDITIONAL LIKE NET MILLION? IS THAT RIGHT? IT'D BE LIKE ONE POINT NO, THE CHANGE, UM, THE CHANGES TO THE PERCENTAGES ARE, YOU KNOW, THE ACTUAL DOLLAR AMOUNTS ARE BASED ON HOT PERFORMANCE.DO YOU HAVE A GUESS FOR THE NEXT YEAR IF WE WERE TO MAKE THE CHANGE, SORT OF WHAT THE, WHAT THE DELTA WOULD BE? UH, I BELIEVE, UH, HOUSTON FIRST, THEIR HOT PROJECTION IS 116 MILLION THIS YEAR, SO.
I GUESS WHERE I'M GOING WITH THIS IS SORT OF, UM, COUNCIL MEMBER ELKHORN WAS ASKING ABOUT SORT OF ADDITIONAL PHILANTHROPIC FUNDRAISING THAT YOU DO.
AND WAS THIS MONEY EXPECTED TO SORT OF INCREASE YOUR ADMIN STAFF OR WHAT'S THE PLAN FOR, FOR THE, THE ADDITIONAL MONEY? SO IT WOULD GO TOWARDS LIKE, UM, OUR ABILITY TO SUPPORT, UM, ELIGIBILITY VERIFICATION FOR INSTANCE.
SO INSTEAD OF, UM, OUR FOUR STAFF MEMBERS HAVING TO MANUALLY REVIEW 883 APPLICATIONS WITHIN A YEAR, YOU KNOW, WE COULD INVEST IN THE INFRASTRUCTURE THAT WOULD AUTOMATE ELIGIBILITY SO THAT WE COULD, UM, REALLY DIRECT THE TEAM'S ENERGY AND FOCUS TO MORE APPLICANT SUPPORT, RESPONDING TO EMAILS, ANSWERING CALLS, UM, DOING WORKSHOPS.
IT COULD ALSO SUPPORT THE WORK THAT WE'RE DOING TO ELEVATE THE, UM, THE CITY'S, UH, CULTURAL EVENTS CALENDAR THAT WE MANAGE ON THEIR BEHALF.
WE'VE GOTTEN A LOT OF FEEDBACK FROM, UM, COMMUNITY MEMBERS THAT THEY FEEL THAT THAT COULD BE, UM, A, A TOOL THAT COULD HELP UPLIFT WHAT'S GOING ON WITHIN THE ARTS AND CULTURAL ECOSYSTEM, AND THAT MAYBE WE'RE NOT LEVERAGING IT IN THE BEST WAYS, BUT IN ORDER TO REALLY DEVELOP THAT, THAT CALENDAR OUT, THAT PLATFORM OUT, WE NEED TO, YOU KNOW, HAVE DOLLARS THAT WE CAN INVEST INTO THAT.
UM, SO NOT REALLY PERSONNEL CHANGES OR ADDING MORE STAFF, IT REALLY IS LIKE INFRASTRUCTURAL SUPPORT.
CAN YOU PUT ME BACK IN THE QUEUE? OKAY, THANKS.
STAFF FROM COUNCIL MEMBER THOMAS'S OFFICE.
UH, THANK YOU SO MUCH TAYLOR FOR THE THOROUGH PRESENTATION.
I DON'T HAVE A QUESTION DIRECTLY RELATED TO THE PRESENTATION, SO I'M HAPPY TO RETURN BACK IN THE QUEUE AFTER, UM, LEAH, IF SHE HAS A PARTICULAR QUESTION ABOUT THE HOT PRESENTATION.
WE'RE BACK TO, UH, BACK TO YOU LEAH.
I, I THINK I UNDERSTAND YOUR QUESTION.
YOU'RE ASKING ABOUT LIKE WHAT HAAS'S INCREASE IN FEE MIGHT LOOK LIKE? IS THAT WHAT, SO UNDER THIS KIND OF LAST YEAR SCENARIO, UM, WITH THAT CHANGE IT WOULD MEAN IN, WAS IT A HUNDRED, 122,000? YEAH.
SO YEAH, IF YOU GO TO THE SLIDE BEFORE THIS, YOU CAN SEE THAT, UM, OOPS, SORRY, ONE MORE SLIDE BEFORE.
SO YOU CAN SEE IT'S ABOUT $122,000 DIFFERENCE.
OH, I WAS DOING THE MATH WRONG.
UM, SO FEEL FREE TO CUT ME OFF IF YOU NEED TO, BUT, UM, ANOTHER COUPLE QUESTIONS.
SO I THOUGHT THAT HOUSTON FIRST LIKE, IS THE MAIN FUNDER, IS THAT FALSE? YES.
MILLER OUTDOOR IS A CITY OWNED FACILITY.
WE LIKE MANY OTHER CITY OWNED CULTURAL FACILITIES.
THE THING THAT'S UNIQUE ABOUT MILLER IS THE CITY MANDATE TO PROVIDE ALWAYS FREE PUBLIC PROGRAMMING, UM, WHICH THEY HAVE DONE VERY WELL FOR SO MANY YEARS AND WE ALL KIND OF LOVE AND HAVE STORIES OF, YOU KNOW, MILLER OUTDOOR AND, AND, UM, EXPERIENCING THAT.
BUT, UM, THEIR PROGRAMMING IS NOT SUPPORTED THROUGH HOUSTON FIRST.
THEIR PROGRAMMING IS SUPPORTED IN, IN LARGE PART THROUGH, UM, THESE RESOURCES.
UM, AND THEN HOUSTON FIRST, AS WITH ALL OF OUR, UH, CITY OWNED CULTURAL FACILITIES IS THE FACILITIES MANAGER.
UM, I HAD A QUESTION ABOUT THE GRANTS PROCESS, IF THAT'S OKAY.
SOMETHING I'M NOT AN EXPERT IN AT ALL.
UM, SO I IMAGINE WITH A DIVERSE ARTS SCENE IT CAN BE CHALLENGING WITH A LIMITED DOLLAR AMOUNT, RIGHT? TO GIVE THOSE OUT.
SO HOW DO YOU MANAGE, UM, KIND OF THE, THE TENSION BETWEEN SUPPORTING NEWER OR EMERGING ARTISTS VERSUS WELL ESTABLISHED ARTISTS? AND YOU HAVE SOME DELINEATION BETWEEN BIG, BIG ARTS ORGS AND SMALL ARTS ORGS, BUT CAN YOU TALK ABOUT HOW YOU, HOW YOU DETERMINE THAT? YEAH.
OUR SUPPORT IS PRETTY MUCH THE SAME FOR ANYONE ACROSS THE BOARD.
FOLKS CAN SIGN UP TO HAVE, YOU KNOW, ONE-ON-ONE TIME WITH THE GRANTS TEAM TO WORK THROUGH THEIR APPLICATION.
UM, THEY CAN SUBMIT TICKETS VIA AN APPLICATION THAT WE HAVE HAVE CALLED ZENDESK.
THEY CAN EMAIL THE GRANTS TEAM.
UM, WE TRY TO COORDINATE WITH DIFFERENT COMMUNITY ORGANIZATIONS AND COUNCIL DISTRICTS ACROSS THE CITY TO HOST, YOU KNOW, 10 TO 14 IN-PERSON WORKSHOPS A YEAR AND MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE NOT JUST EXPECTING PEOPLE TO COME TO US, BUT THAT WE'RE ACTUALLY ACTIVATING IN COMMUNITIES, UM, AND MAKING OUR SUPPORT AVAILABLE TO FOLKS THERE.
[00:35:01]
AND SO IT REALLY IS LIKE BASED ON, YOU KNOW, IT'S LIKE A CASE BY CASE BASIS.YOU KNOW, WE HAVE VETERAN, UM, APPLICANTS WHO REALLY TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THE PANEL COMMENTS AND WANNA MEET WITH THE STAFF TO UNDERSTAND, YOU KNOW, AFTER THEY'VE BEEN ABLE TO REVIEW THOSE PANEL COMMENTS, HOW THEY CAN IMPROVE THEIR APPLICATION FOR THE NEXT YEAR, WHETHER THEY WERE AWARDED OR NOT.
UM, SO THERE'S SEVERAL WAYS THAT WE KIND OF, YOU KNOW, OFFER THAT SUPPORT.
BUT, UM, OF COURSE, YOU KNOW, FOR FIRST TIME APPLICANTS WE MIGHT NEED TO, YOU KNOW, REVIEW THINGS MORE CLOSELY RELATED TO ELIGIBILITY, UM, AND GIVING THEM AN OVERVIEW OF THE DIFFERENT PROGRAMS SO THEY CAN UNDERSTAND WHAT MIGHT BE THE BEST FIT FOR THEIR PROJECT.
WHEREAS WITH FOLKS WHO ARE, UM, YOU KNOW, MAYBE MORE FAMILIAR WITH THE GRANT APPLICATION PROCESS, THE SUPPORT MIGHT LEAN MORE TOWARDS COMMUNICATING WHAT'S CHANGED YEAR OVER YEARS.
IT RELATES TO OUR GUIDELINES, APPLICATION QUESTIONS, CONTRACTING, ET CETERA.
SO IT'S NOT, YOU DON'T HAVE LIKE A SPECIFIC BUCKET OR STRATEGY OR VISION AROUND LIKE, THIS AMOUNT OF MONEY IS GOING TO ORGS WITH LESS THAN 500 K IN THEIR BUDGET OR WITH TO NEW ARTISTS, OR YOU DON'T HAVE DELINEATED LIKE, SORT OF LIKE THAT.
UM, NOT FOR THE PURPOSE OF THIS PRESENTATION, THAT IS WORK THAT WE MIGHT GET INTO WHEN WE'RE WORKING WITH, UM, THE GRANT WORKING GROUPS TO LIKE BEST ILLUSTRATE HOW, HOW THE DOLLARS ARE FLOWING AND WHERE THERE MAY BE GAPS WHERE WE NEED TO DO MORE OUTREACH.
SO YOU'VE ADJUSTED UPWARDS THE PERCENTAGES.
I SEE JUST TO KIND OF MAKE UP FOR THE FACT THAT YOU'VE GONE ABOVE THE LINE.
SO IT SEEMS TO BE, I'VE KIND OF DONE THE MATH ON IT.
IT SEEMS TO BE KIND OF A WASH A LITTLE BIT HERE OR THERE.
HOW MANY INSTITUTIONS, UM, OVER $10 MILLION DO WE FUND? UH, 11.
AND IS THAT FORMULAIC WHAT THEY GET? IT IS.
AND STAFF FROM COUNCIL MEMBER THOMAS'S OFFICE.
UM, NOT TO SWITCH GEARS HERE, UM, BUT UNRELATED TO THE PRESENTATION DIRECTOR, LEO, JUST WANTED TO GO BACK TO THE WORLD CUP MURALS IN YOUR PRESENTATION ABOUT THAT.
UM, OUR OFFICE DID KIND OF SET UP A COUPLE MONTHS AGO, I BELIEVE, AN INTRODUCTORY MEETING WITH YOU MM-HMM
AND EXPRESSED INTEREST IN BEING A PART OF THAT INITIATIVE AS DISTRICT F IS ONE OF AMONG THE, ONE OF THE MOST DIVERSE DISTRICTS IN THE CITY OF HOUSTON.
SO, UM, JUST WANTED TO EXPRESS ON BEHALF OF THE COUNCIL MEMBER OUR EXTREME DISAPPOINTMENT, UM, THAT WE KIND OF FOUND OUT IN THE HOUSTON CHRONICLE ABOUT, YOU KNOW, THE DIFFERENT NEIGHBORHOODS THAT WOULD BE A PART OF THAT INITIATIVE.
AND WE'RE EXPECTING SOME TYPE OF FOLLOW UP, UM, FROM YOU OR YOUR OFFICE IN REGARDS TO THAT.
SO WANTED TO, UM, ADDRESS THAT JUST GIVEN, I MEAN, IT'S THE HOME OF THE INTERNATIONAL MANAGEMENT DISTRICT.
YOU KNOW, SOCCER IS ONE OF THE DOMINANT SPORTS IN OUR AREA.
AND, UM, REALLY JUST WANTING TO BE, UH, HAVE SOME REPRESENTATION ON THE WEST SIDE FOR FIFA, WHICH IS INTERNATIONAL.
AND NO BETTER PLACE THAN DISTRICT F ON THAT, SO I'LL YIELD MY TIME, BUT I JUST WANTED TO GET KIND OF LIKE SOME CLARIFICATION.
IT SEEMS LIKE YOU ALSO WERE A LITTLE SURPRISED AND LEARNED THIS MORNING ON KIND OF HOW THAT IS POSSIBLE, IF YOU CAN CLARIFY.
I DON'T WORK DIRECTLY WITH THE HOST COMMITTEE OR ANY OF THE WORLD CUP AFFILIATED ENTITIES.
UM, I BELIEVE THAT WORKS THROUGH THE GOVERNMENT AFFAIRS OFFICE AND I'M HAPPY TO, TO MAKE THAT CONNECTION AS WELL.
BUT, UM, I HAVE ALSO BEEN WORKING TO GET CONNECTED.
I THINK EVERYONE IS, YOU KNOW, WORKING FAST AND FURIOUSLY TRYING TO MEET A LOT OF DEADLINES AND BE FULLY PREPARED FOR THE, UH, FOR THE EVENT.
BUT, UM, YOU KNOW, I HAVE NOT HAD ANY DIRECT CONVERSATION WITH THE LEADERSHIP OF THE HOST COMMITTEE TO GET THAT INFORMATION.
I FOUND OUT ABOUT IT AS WELL WHEN YOU DID IT IN, IN THE PAPER, YOU KNOW, THAT WAS A SURPRISE TO ME TOO.
UM, THERE WAS AN UNVEILING IN MY DISTRICT A COUPLE MONTHS AGO FOR A MURAL, UM, AND I WAS TOLD THAT WAS THE ONLY ONE THAT WAS GONNA BE HAPPENING.
SO WHEN I SAW THAT THIS MORNING, I'M LIKE, HOW DID THAT HAPPEN? YOU KNOW? BUT I, I DO THINK, YOU KNOW, THE RELATIONSHIPS THERE WITH THE HOST COMMITTEE ARE KEY TO GETTING AHEAD OF SOME OF THOSE THINGS.
AND I THINK, YOU KNOW, OBVIOUSLY THIS WAS PUT TOGETHER WHEN, WHEN, UH, FROM A HOST COMMITTEE STANDPOINT WHEN MY OFFICE WAS VACANT, AND, AND IT WOULD'VE BEEN NICE TO HAVE THAT REPRESENTATION TO HELP BRIDGE THAT GAP BETWEEN THE ARTS AND THE, THE HOST COMMITTEE.
BUT, UM, YOU KNOW, I WILL CERTAINLY REACH OUT AGAIN AND SHARE THE FEEDBACK AND, UM, AND SEE HOW WE CAN GET EVERYONE CONNECTED.
WE HAVE NO MORE QUESTIONS, UH, ON THIS PRESENTATION, SO THANK YOU BOTH FOR THE TIME AND THE INFORMATION AND LOOK FORWARD TO THE FOLLOW UP.
[00:40:01]
HAVE A PRESENTATION ON THE HOUSTON CULTURAL DISTRICT'S SUMMER MARKETING PLAN FROM CRAIG.THANK YOU ALL, VICE CHAIR AND, AND EVERYONE AROUND THE HORSESHOE FOR HAVING US HERE.
I'M THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF THE HOUSTON THEATER DISTRICT, BUT I'M HERE REPRESENTING ALL OF THE CULTURAL DISTRICTS, UM, UH, COLLECTIVELY WHO HAVE, UH, PUT FORWARD A MARKETING PLAN FOR THE ARTS ORGANIZATIONS ACROSS THE CITY, INCLUDING THE CULTURAL DISTRICTS, BUT WELL BEYOND.
SO THIS, THE IDEA IS THIS IS GONNA BE A CITYWIDE EFFORT.
UM, I'M HERE TO PREVIEW IT AND THEN ASK YOU FOR YOUR HELP IN, IN GETTING THE WORD OUT ABOUT THIS, UH, THIS EFFORT.
UH, YOU COULD ADVANCE THIS SLIDE.
UM, OH, HERE'S THE, THE SEVEN CULTURAL DISTRICTS.
FOR THOSE OF YOU WHO ARE NOT FAMILIAR WITH THE SEVEN, WE'VE GOT THE FIFTH WARD CULTURAL DISTRICT, EAST END CULTURAL DISTRICT, THIRD WARD, CULTURAL DISTRICT, UM, ARTS DISTRICT, HOUSTON MIDTOWN, AND THEN THE TWO OLDER, UM, DISTRICTS FROM BEFORE THE STATE DESIGNATION, THE MUSEUM AND THEATER DISTRICT.
THE, THIS CAMPAIGN IS GONNA BE A, UM, ACTIVE DURING ALIGNED LOOSELY WITH FIFA.
SO IT'S GONNA BE THERE IN JUNE AND JULY.
AND IT'S GONNA INCLUDE TWO ELEMENTS, AN EVENTS CALENDAR AND A BLOG.
AND THE STRUCTURE OF THE CAMPAIGN IS DESIGNED TO PULL ANYONE IN, UH, TO, TO THE EVENTS CALENDAR, GET THEM TO LOOK THROUGH THE BLOG, LEARN MORE ABOUT THE DIVERSITY AND THE, THE, THE, UM, THE, THE DIVERSITY OF THE ARTS, ARTS ORGANIZATIONS.
UM, THE CALENDAR HERE, WE'RE JUST ABOUT TO LAUNCH.
UH, WE'LL, WE'LL LOOK LIKE, LIKE THIS.
UH, YOU CAN GO TO THE NEXT SLIDE.
AND WE'RE TARGETING TWO PRIMARY PRIMARY AUDIENCES.
ONE IS THE 500,000 ESTIMATED, UH, FIFA GUESTS, AND THEN ALL HOUSTONIANS WHO MIGHT BE LOOKING FOR THINGS OTHER THAN SOCCER OVER THE NEXT COUPLE MONTHS.
UM, BY COMBINING THOSE TWO, UH, CONSTITUENCIES, OUR GOAL IS TO, UH, MAKE SURE THAT DURING THE SUMMER, WHICH IS NOT THE, THE ALWAYS THE MOST, UH, FULL ARTS CALENDAR, THAT FOLKS KNOW WHAT'S OUT THERE AND REALLY DRIVE ATTENTION TO PLACES THAT THEY MIGHT NOT OTHERWISE GET TO.
SO IF YOU OFTEN GO TO ONE, ONE PART OF TOWN OR ANOTHER, OR SEE ONE ARTS ORGANIZATION OR ANOTHER, YOU'LL BE ABLE TO SEE, SEE EVERYTHING IN ONE PLACE AND, AND NAVIGATE.
THE, THE, THIS, THIS EFFORT IS DRIVEN BY THREE ANCHOR EVENTS, ALL FREE OUTDOOR ACTIVITIES.
UH, THE FIRST ONE YOU CAN GO TO, THE NEXT SLIDE IS COMING UP, UH, JUNE 6TH TO CELEBRATE FREEDOM FEST.
THIS IS TIED TO SOMETHING GOING ON IN THE THIRD WARD, UH, WITH JUNETEENTH, THE OPENING OF THEIR LARGE FESTIVAL.
UM, AND, UH, THE NEXT SLIDE, WE'LL HAVE OUR NEXT ANCHOR EVENT WITH MAKE MUSIC DAY A FEW DAYS LATER.
DO I SOUND LIKE A ROBOT TO YOU GUYS? 'CAUSE IT DOES.
UM, MAKE MUSIC DAY ON FATHER'S DAY, UH, WHICH, UH, WAS FORMERLY SOMETHING THAT THE OFFICE OF CULTURAL AFFAIRS LED, UH, BUT THE ARTS DISTRICT HOUSTON HAS TAKEN IT OVER WITH, WITH GUSTO AND, AND BE ACTIVATING SPACES ACROSS THE CITY FOR FREE MUSIC PROGRAMMING THROUGHOUT THE DAY.
AND THEN THE THIRD ANCHOR EVENT IS 4TH OF JULY AT MILLER OUTDOOR THEATER, WHERE WE'RE BRINGING THE HOUSTON SYMPHONY INN AND REOPENING THAT VENUE.
THOSE WILL BE THE, THE EVENTS THAT WE PROMOTE PRIMARILY.
UH, AND THEN THE IDEA IS THAT WHEN PEOPLE SEE THESE FREE EVENTS, THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE ARE COMING.
THOUSANDS MORE HOPEFULLY WILL COME.
THEY WILL SEE THEN THE CALENDAR OF ALL OF THE EXTRA EVENTS AND GO DEEPER.
AND THAT'S ACTUALLY WHAT THAT MEANS.
UH, I SHOULD HAVE SAID THAT SOONER.
AND I WANNA NOTE HOW SPECIAL OF A MOMENT I THINK WE'RE IN RIGHT NOW FOR THE ARTS AND CULTURE SECTOR.
UM, THERE'S A LOT OF EXCITEMENT AROUND, UH, DIRECTOR AL'S APPOINTMENT, THE NEW LEADERSHIP AT HOUSTON ARTS ALLIANCE WITH TAYLOR.
UM, I'LL SAY LIKE, THE COMMUNICATION THAT THEY'VE BEEN SHARING ABOUT THIS CONTRACT HAS BEEN REALLY LOVELY.
I FEEL LIKE THERE'S A SPIRIT OF COLLABORATION THAT'S JUST EXCITING TO ME.
UM, WITH THIS EFFORT, YOU KNOW, WE HAVE EXISTING ARTS CALENDARS, RIGHT? LIKE HOUSTON FIRST HAS VISIT HOUSTON, WE HAVE THE HOUSTON ARTS ALLIANCE CULTURAL CALENDAR.
WHAT I THINK THIS DOES, UH, THIS EFFORT DOES UNIQUELY TO THOSE IS THAT WE'RE WORKING TOGETHER WITH HOUSTON ARTS ALLIANCE AND HOUSTON FIRST TO MAKE SURE THAT ALL OF THE EVENTS ARE ON ALL OF THE CALENDARS.
SO WE'RE DOING THE WORK ON THE BACKEND RATHER THAN PUTTING THE ONUS ON PEOPLE TO, TO KEEP UP WITH ALL OF THESE CALENDARS.
AND THAT WAY, WHEREVER THE ENTRY POINT IS FOR THE ORS ORGANIZATIONS, ANYONE IN THE CITY WILL GET ACCESS TO THOSE
[00:45:01]
WHEREVER THEIR ENTRY POINT IS, WHETHER IT'S HOUSTON FIRST MICROSITE OR THE CULTURAL CALENDAR.UM, AND THIS IS ALSO BEING, UH, SUPPORTED BY THE TEXAS COMMISSION FOR THE ARTS.
SO, MY ASK TO YOU IS, IN THE NEXT WEEK, IF YOU HAVE, UH, ARTISTS AND ARTS ORGANIZATIONS IN YOUR NETWORKS, PLEASE SHARE THIS WITH THEM.
IT'S NOT SOMETHING WE'VE DONE IN THIS STYLE BEFORE, SO NOT EVERYONE KNOWS YET.
WE WANT MAKE SURE THAT EVERYONE FEELS INCLUDED.
UM, THERE IS INFORMATION ON WHERE YOU CAN EMAIL OR THERE'S A EVENT SUBMISSION GUIDE IN THE, THE, THE, THE DECK.
THEN ONCE LIVE AT THE END OF NEXT WEEK, WE ENCOURAGE YOU TO PUSH OUT TO YOUR COMMUNITIES THROUGH YOUR NEWSLETTERS AND ANY OTHER SOCIAL MEDIA CHANNELS THAT YOU HAVE THAT THIS CALENDAR EXISTS.
UH, IT WILL LIVE@HOUSTONCULTURALDISTRICTS.COM.
AND THEN I WOULD LOVE IT IF WE COULD INVITE YOU ALL TO JOIN US FOR ANY OF THOSE ANCHOR EVENTS AND EXPLORE THE BLOGS, FIND SOMETHING ELSE IN YOUR DISTRICT OR BEYOND THAT THAT EXCITES YOU AND, AND, AND WE HOPE TO SEE YOU OUT THERE.
IF YOU'RE COMING, PLEASE LET US KNOW SO THAT WE CAN MAKE SURE THAT, UH, WE CAN GUIDE YOU AROUND AND GET YOU ALL, UH, PLUGGED IN.
UM, ULTIMATELY WE JUST WANNA SHARE THE WORD.
WE FEEL LIKE THIS IS AN EXCITING TIME FOR THE ARTS AND WANNA MAKE SURE THAT EVERYONE KNOWS IT'S A, IT'S A BIG TENT THAT WE'RE HERE TO SUPPORT EVERYBODY AND WE'RE GRATEFUL FOR YOU.
WE'RE GRATEFUL FOR HOUSTON ARTS ALLIANCE AND WE'RE GRATEFUL FOR, UH, THE MAYOR'S OFFICE OF THE ARTS.
I AGREE THIS IS A VERY EXCITING TIME FOR ARTS AND CULTURE IN HOUSTON.
UH, I WILL BE HAPPY TO SHARE THIS WITH MY, UH, SOCIAL MEDIA NETWORKS NEWSLETTER, YOU NAME IT, AND SEE ABOUT COMING OUT TO ONE OF THE EVENTS.
UM, WE DO HAVE STAFF FROM COUNCIL MEMBER RAMIREZ'S OFFICE, UH, WITH A QUESTION.
HELLO? UM, YOU MAY HAVE SAID IT AND I MISSED IT, BUT STRATEGY TO PROMOTE IT.
YEAH, SO THE CULTURAL DISTRICTS HAVE ALL INVESTED, UH, MONEY.
WE'RE WORKING WITH A MARKETING FIRM CALLED MDR.
UM, THEY'RE BUILDING OUT A PAID SOCIAL MEDIA CAMPAIGN.
AND THEN WE'RE WORKING WITH I KIOSKS TO MAKE SURE THAT THERE'S INFORMATION ON THE DIGITAL KIOSKS OF TOWN AND, UH, HOUSTON.
FIRST, ARE THEY PARTICIPATING IN PUSHING IT OUT IN SOME WAY OR THEY'RE PARTICIPATING MOSTLY THROUGH COORDINATION ON THE CALENDAR.
THEY'RE ALREADY DOING THEIR LARGE FIFA EFFORT, AND THIS IS ALL, I WOULD SAY LOOSELY TIED TO THAT, BUT TRYING TO SIT UNDERNEATH IT.
SO THE COORDINATION WITH THEM IS TO MAKE SURE THAT THE CALENDARS ARE LINKED MM-HMM
AND THAT WE'VE GOT LINKAGE IN THOSE EVENTS SO THAT PEOPLE CAN MOVE BETWEEN, BETWEEN THE CALENDARS.
IS IS THERE INTEREST, I'M NOT SPEAKING FOR THEM, BUT WOULD IT BE HELPFUL IF THEY WERE HELPING SOMEBODY? I MEAN, THAT'S A QUESTION.
I LOVE WORKING WITH THE HOUSTON FIRST, UH, MARKETING TEAM.
THEY'RE, THEY'RE ALL VERY, VERY WONDERFUL.
I THINK, UM, THIS EFFORT IS MEANT TO COMPLIMENT IT AND IT DOESN'T NECESSARILY, UM, WE DON'T NECESSARILY NEED THEM TO BE ACTIVELY PUSHING IT AND BECAUSE WE'RE DOING THAT WORK.
WELL, YOU PUT ME BACK IN THE QUEUE.
UM, WHAT ABOUT, SAME QUESTION ABOUT THE FIFA, LIKE LOCAL HOST COMMITTEE FOLKS, ANY RELATIONSHIP TO THEM PUSHING IT OUT OR, NO, THAT'S A, THAT'S A GREAT QUESTION TOO.
SO I WAS ON ONE OF THE COMMITTEES, UH, UH, BROUGHT IN THROUGH DOWNTOWN HOUSTON PLUS AND THE WORK THAT THEY WERE DOING.
SO I'VE BEEN PLUGGED INTO SOME OF THAT WORK.
UM, I'M GONNA BE SHARING THIS ONCE IT'S LIVE WITH THOSE GROUPS TOO, TO MAKE SURE THAT THEY'RE TIED IN AND, UM, YOU KNOW, AT RISK OF THROWING MYSELF UNDER THE BUS, I DID FIND OUT ABOUT THE MURAL THING LIKE TWO OR THREE DAYS BEFORE YOU DID BY CHANCE.
SO IF, I DON'T THINK I HAVE A LOT OF MORE INFORMATION, BUT I'M HAPPY TO, TO TRY TO CONNECT TO ANYBODY THAT, TO FOLKS THAT I'VE, I'VE BEEN CONNECTED WITH.
I WAS JUST THINKING THAT FIFA WILL HAVE A LOT OF ACCESS TO HUMANS, RIGHT? YEAH.
AND THAT'S, YEAH, AND THAT'S, THAT IS THE GOAL IS TO CONNECT THAT THOSE DOTS.
LAST LAST QUESTION, WILL THE, THE CALENDAR AND THE BLOG, WILL THEY EXIST BEYOND THE NEXT COUPLE MONTHS? THAT IS A GREAT QUESTION.
UM, THE INFRASTRUCTURE FOR THIS PROJECT IS BEING BUILT STRATEGICALLY TO EXIST AFTER IT, BUT WE'RE GONNA EVALUATE HOW THAT EXISTS, UM, AT THE FOLLOWING, FOLLOWING THE CAMPAIGN.
APPRECIATE YOU BEING HERE AND SHARING THAT UPDATE.
ALRIGHT, WE WILL NOW MOVE ON TO PUBLIC COMMENT.
THERE ARE A NUMBER OF FOLKS WHO HAVE SIGNED UP ONLINE AND THERE IS ALSO A SIGNUP SHEET AT THE FRONT TABLE.
IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO SIGN UP THERE.
UM, WHEN YOUR NAME IS CALLED, COME ON UP.
YOU'LL BE GIVEN THREE MINUTES TO MAKE YOUR REMARKS.
FIRST UP WE HAVE CATHERINE NOSER.
I'M THE PRESIDENT OF THE BOARD AT COMPANY ON STAGE COMMUNITY THEATER.
[00:50:01]
A 100% VOLUNTEER DRIVEN NON-PROFIT ORGANIZATION THAT HAS BEEN PROVIDING PROFESSIONAL QUALITY LIVE THEATER SINCE 1978.WE PRESENT 10 PRODUCTIONS EACH SEASON, FIVE FOR TEENS AND ADULTS, AND FIVE FOR CHILDREN.
WHILE HOUSTON IS SECOND ONLY TO NEW YORK CITY.
IN TERMS OF THE NUMBER OF THEATER SEATS, MOST HOUSTONIANS CANNOT AFFORD TO ATTEND A LIVE THEATER PRODUCTION.
COMMUNITY THEATER HELPS FILL THAT GAP.
UH, TICKETS FOR COMMUNITY THEATERS ARE APPROXIMATELY ONE THIRD, THE AVERAGE TICKET PRICE IN HOUSTON.
ADDITIONALLY, COMPANY ON STAGE HAS A PROGRAM CALLED LIBRARY DAYS, WHERE WE PRESENT A FREE PERFORMANCE OF OUR YOUNG AUDIENCE PRODUCTIONS.
UM, AND, UH, WE HAVE HOUSTON PUBLIC LIBRARY ON HAND, UH, SIGNING KIDS AND PARENTS UP FOR LIBRARY CARDS AS WELL.
UM, WHILE WE'RE LOCATED IN DISTRICT J, WE HAVE PATRONS THAT COME FROM THROUGHOUT THE CITY OF HOUSTON, FROM KATY, ALL THE WAY DOWN TO CLEAR LAKE, WHICH, UH, ILLUSTRATES THE NEED FOR THE SERVICES WE PROVIDE.
UM,
MANY GRANT MAKERS, INCLUDING HAA AND HOUSTON ENDOWMENT, TEND TO FUND ORGANIZATIONS THAT HAVE ORG THAT HAVE BUDGETS GREATER THAN $400,000 AND OR THOSE THAT PAY THEIR ACTORS.
BUT THAT'S NOT THE ROLE THAT COMMUNITY THEATERS PLAY IN THE ARTISTIC COMMUNITY.
WE ARE A COMM, WE ARE A CREATIVE OUTLET FOR THOSE WHO HAVE CHOSEN PROFESSIONS OUTSIDE OF THE ARTS.
TEACHERS, IT PROFESSIONALS, ENGINEERS STAY AT HOME PARENTS, AND EVEN JUDGES SUCH AS THE HONORABLE CHRISTINE WEEMS. WE ARE A TRAINING GROUND FOR THOSE WHO HAVE AN INTEREST IN A FUTURE, UM, PROFESSION IN THE ARTS, MOST NOTABLY, UH, GILMORE GIRLS ACTRESS ALEXIS LIDDELL, WHO GOT HER START ON THE COMPANY ON STAGE THEATER AT THE COMPANY ON STAGE THEATER.
UM, THE SIZE OF OUR BUDGET AND THE FACT THAT WE HAVE VOLUNTEER ACTORS DOES NOT LESSEN THE VALUE THAT WE BRING TO THE COMMUNITY.
WE MAKE EXPOSURE TO THE ARTS POSSIBLE FOR THOUSANDS OF PATRONS EACH YEAR FOR WHOM IT WOULD BE FINANCIALLY OUT OF REACH WITHOUT US.
BECAUSE OUR MISSION TO BRING LIFE THEATER TO ALL VERY FEW PATRONS WILL EVER BE ABLE TO BE THE MAJOR DONORS THAT LARGER ORGANIZATIONS HAVE.
THEY JUST SIMPLY DON'T HAVE THE FINANCIAL CAPACITY TO DO SO, BUT THEY DESERVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO ENGAGE IN THE ARTS ON A REGULAR BASIS.
WE REQUEST SUPPORT FROM THE CITY FOR COMMUNITY THEATERS.
WE INVITE OUR COUNCIL MEMBERS AND STAFF MEMBERS TO COME ATTEND COMMUNITY THEATER PRODUCTIONS, SEE THE WORK WE DO AND THE PROFESSIONAL LEVEL OF THEATER THAT WE PRESENT.
AND WE ASK FOR YOU TO HELP US FIND RESOURCES TO FUND THIS MUCH NEEDED COMMUNITY RESOURCE.
WITHOUT YOUR HELP, ACCESS TO THE ARTS FOR THOSE OF LESSER FINANCIAL MEANS WILL BE DIMINISHED OR GONE ENTIRELY.
AND WE ASK THAT YOU HELP US MAKE SURE THAT LIVE THEATER REMAINS A COMMUNITY TREASURE FOR ALL HOUSTONIANS RATHER THAN A LUXURY FOR THE FEW.
THANK YOU CATHERINE FOR BEING HERE FOR THE WORK THAT YOU DO.
UH, THIS IS MY FIRST TIME LEARNING ABOUT Y'ALL.
UM, AND SO I, I WILL LOOK INTO IT MORE, BUT I APPRECIATE YOU COMING DOWN HERE TO ADVOCATE AND TO GIVE YOUR COMMENTS.
NEXT UP WE HAVE HELEN WARWICK.
HELEN'S UNABLE TO ATTEND TODAY.
OKAY, THANK YOU TONY DIAZ, YOU ARE UP NEXT.
LET ME TURN MY TIMER AROUND TOO.
I AM AUTHOR TONY DIAZ, ANTE FOUNDER OF NO LATINOS HAVING THEIR SAY, WHICH I FOUNDED IN 1998.
AND IN YEARS PAST I WAS IN THIS HALL WITH OTHERS PROTESTING THE GRANTS GIVING INFRASTRUCTURE OF HOUSTON.
TODAY I'M HERE TO GIVE PRAISE, WHICH IS BORN OF THOSE YEARS, WHICH INCLUDED
NOW WE'RE DEEP IN IT AND IT IS AGAIN, 'CAUSE OF THE WORK OF OTHERS THAT STOOD UP AT THAT TIME.
IT IS BECAUSE TIME HAS PASSED AND IT'S ALSO BECAUSE I THINK THERE WERE INDIVIDUALS, AND I'M NOT GONNA NAME NAMES BECAUSE MAYBE WE WERE RIGHT, MAYBE WE WERE WRONG, BUT THERE WAS THE PERCEPTION THAT SOME OF THE FOLKS RUNNING SOME OF THESE LEVELS WERE, WERE NOT LOCKED IN FOR WHAT THE COMMUNITY WANTED.
RIGHTLY OR WRONGLY, MAYBE WE JUST DIDN'T COMMUNICATE.
I'M HERE TO SAY I'M EXCITED THAT BECAUSE OF THE WORK OF ACTIVISTS, COMMUNITY ORGANIZERS 'CAUSE OF TIME AND SOME OF THE DECISIONS THAT Y'ALL HAVE MADE, THIS IS A NEW ERA AND I AM REALLY EXCITED TO REPORT FOR DUTY ON BEHALF OF OUR ORGANIZATION THAT'S BEEN AROUND FOR 28 YEARS.
WE WANNA WORK WITH THE LEADERSHIP YOU'VE ASSEMBLED, THE SUPPORT YOU'RE GIVING THEM.
I'M REALLY EXCITED THAT MICHELLE IS LEADING THE NEW DEPARTMENT
[00:55:01]
AND THAT NEEDED TO BE TRANSFORMED.THERE'S GREAT EXPECTATIONS OF THAT AND SHE'S ALWAYS BEEN TUNED IN WITH THE COMMUNITY.
IT'S EXCITING TO SEE HIL AT THE HEAD OF THE HOUSTON ARTS ALLIANCE BOARD, WHICH IS A LOT OF WORK, BUT I RESPECT HIM BECAUSE HE'S ALSO INVOLVED IN THE ARTS.
HAVING MADE THE DOCUMENTARY CHICANO SQUAD, WHICH ISN'T JUST POWERFUL, BUT IT'S ABOUT OUR COMMUNITY.
AND ALSO THIS AIN'T AN EASY JOBS
I APPRECIATE TAYLOR DAY IN, DAY OUT.
I WAS JUST CHATTING WITH KWANG ON THE WAY IN.
DO WE EXPECT PERFECTION? NO, WE CAN ASPIRE TO IT, BUT WE AS COMMUNITY ORGANIZERS, WE DON'T PROTEST FOR THE SAKE OF PROTEST ETHICALLY.
WE GOTTA LET FOLKS KNOW WHAT'S GOING ON AND THEN WHEN FOLKS LET US AT THE TABLE, WE NEED TO SHOW UP.
WE NEED TO DO THE HARD WORK AND WE NEED TO GIVE PROPS WHERE IT'S DUE.
OTHER CITIES ARE CUTTING BACK ON FUNDING TO THE ARTS.
THANK YOU FOR STAYING TRUE TO THAT.
AND I WILL CLOSE WITH A FEW DIRECT COMMENTS ABOUT SOME OF THE POLICIES I'VE HEARD.
IT IS GOOD TO CHANGE THE CITY AND MAYOR'S INITIATIVE FUND.
I'M IMPRESSED THAT Y'ALL ARE DOING THAT.
WE COULD TALK MORE ABOUT THAT LATER.
UH, ADDITIONALLY, I LIKE THAT THE TEAM WANTS TO MAKE IT EASIER TO VERIFY WHO WE ARE SO WE CAN GET TO THE BUSINESS OF DOLING OUT THE GRANTS.
AND ON BEHALF OF RA, WE'RE GRATEFUL THAT WE'VE BEEN AWARDED A, A GRANT FOR OUR FESTIVAL.
IT IS THE, UH, HOUSTON TECH FEST SCHEDULED FOR OCTOBER 17TH.
WE ASPIRE TO BECOME A CITYWIDE BOOK FESTIVAL AND WE'LL BE TALKING TO ALL OF YOU TO MAKE SURE WE TOUCH IN BASES, MAKE SURE ALL OF YOUR SECTORS ARE REPRESENTED, BUT ULTIMATELY WE MUST
I LOVE THAT HOUSTON ARTS ALLIANCE WANTS TO DO THAT AND I'M EXCITED FOR HOUSTON.
THANK YOU TONY FOR BEING HERE AND YOUR COMMENTS AND ALL YOUR WORK.
GOOD AFTERNOON, MEMBERS OF THE COMMITTEE.
MY NAME IS DAVID CORTEZ AND I'M THE CO-FOUNDER AND BOARD MEMBER OF THE HOUSTON LATINO FILM FESTIVAL.
UH, I'M HERE TODAY TO EXPRESS MY APPRECIATION FOR THE CONTINUED SUPPORT THE CITY PROVIDES THROUGH THE MAYOR'S OFFICE OF THE ARTS AND THE HOUSTON ARTS ALLIANCE.
THIS YEAR WE CELEBRATED OUR 10TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE HOUSTON LATINO FILM FESTIVAL.
A MILESTONE THAT MAY NOT HAVE BEEN POSSIBLE WITHOUT THE SUPPORT WE RECEIVED OVER THE YEARS TO THE HOUSTON ARTS AND LIONS IN THE CITY OF HOUSTON.
WHAT STARTED AS A GRASSROOTS TWO DAY FILM FESTIVAL HAS EVOLVED INTO A CULTURAL ARTS ORGANIZATION THAT WELCOMES MORE THAN 5,000 ATTENDEES EACH YEAR.
OVER THE PAST DECADE, THE HOUSTON LATINO FILM FESTIVAL HAS BECAME A TRUSTED CULTURAL PLATFORM WITHIN THE COMMUNITY, CONNECTING WITH HOUSTONIANS ACROSS ALL COUNCIL DISTRICTS, WHILE CONVENING OR CREATING ME MEANINGFUL OPPORTUNITIES FOR LOCAL FILMMAKERS, ARTISTS TO GROW, COLLABORATE, AND SHOWCASE THEIR WORK.
THE FESTIVAL ALSO BRINGS FILMMAKERS FROM AROUND THE WORLD TO HOUSTON, MEANING FOR THE FIRST TIME VISITING HOUSTON, HELPING BUILD CULTURAL CONNECTIONS THAT STRENGTHEN HOUSTON'S ARTS, HOSPITALITY, AND CREATIVE SECTORS.
TODAY OUR WORK EXTENDS BEYOND THE ANNUAL FILM FESTIVAL THROUGH YEAR-ROUND SCREENINGS, PANELS, WORKSHOPS, CULTURAL PROGRAMMING THAT CONTINUE TO CREATE SPACE FOR ARTISTS, FILMMAKERS, AND THE COMMUNITY.
SUPPORT FROM THE HOUSTON ART ALLIANCE HAS HELPED ORGANIZATIONS LIKE OURS TO CONT CONTINUE PRODUCING ACCESSIBLE COMMUNITY FORWARD CULTURE PROGRAMMING.
AND I WANTED TO PUBLICLY ACKNOWLEDGE THE POSITIVE IMPACT THE SUPPORT HAS OUT ON OUR ORGANIZATION AND THE COMMUNITY THAT WE SERVE.
LASTLY, WE LOOK FORWARD TO OUR CONTINUED PARTNERSHIP WITH CITY LEADERS AND APPRECIATE YOUR CONTINUED SUPPORT IN HELPING US CREATE SPACES WHERE LATINO ARTISTS, STORYTELLERS, COMMUNITIES CAN GATHER AND THRIVE HERE IN HOUSTON.
THANK YOU ALL FOR YOUR TIME AND YOUR CONTINUED SUPPORT OF THE ARTS.
THANK YOU FOR YOUR COMMENTS TODAY.
OUR NEXT SPEAKER IS SHERMAN AUSTIN.
DOES IT MATTER WHICH MARK I USE? EITHER ONE.
I KNOW THIS MIC RIGHT HERE WAS A LITTLE SKETCHY FROM THE BACK.
THANK YOU ALL FOR HAVING ME TODAY.
UH, AND I'M HERE REPRESENTING, UH, A COMMUNITY OF YOUNG ARTISTS, ESPECIALLY MILLENNIALS RIGHT NOW.
SO I'M A THREE TIME HAA GRANT RECIPIENT.
I'VE HAD THE OPPORTUNITY TO MERGE COMMUNITIES HERE WITHIN, UH, THE HOUSTON AREA, BUT THEN ALSO I'VE HAD THE OPPORTUNITY TO SIT AT THE FRONT LINES OF A LOT OF THE EMERGING YOUNG ARTISTS IN FASHION FILM, AS WELL AS MUSIC HERE WITHIN THE, UH, WITHIN THE LARGER HOUSTON AREA.
ALSO, I'M A NATIVE HOUSTONIAN.
I'VE HAD THE OPPORTUNITY TO BASICALLY BE IN EACH ONE OF THE ARTS DISTRICTS, WHETHER I WAS WORKING THERE OR ACTUALLY LIVE THERE.
UH, SO WHAT I WANNA DO FIRST OR SAY VERSUS THANK YOU ALL FOR THE OPPORTUNITY TO HEAR OUR VOICES TODAY BECAUSE WE DO WANT TO PUT FORTH HOW IMPORTANT NOT ONLY THE GRANT
[01:00:01]
FUNDING IS FOR OPPORTUNITIES, YOU KNOW, WITHIN THESE DISTRICTS, BUT THEN ALSO THE UNDERSERVED DISTRICTS AND THE UNDERSERVED, UH, YOU KNOW, YOUTH THAT ARE REPRESENTED RIGHT NOW.I WAS AN EDUCATOR FOR ABOUT THREE YEARS AND ONE OF THE MAIN THINGS THAT WAS MISSING WHEN THEY STARTED TO TAKE AWAY ARTS PROGRAMMING AND WHEN THEY STARTED TO, YOU KNOW, REDUCE THE ACTUAL AMOUNT OF ARTS PROGRAMMING WITHIN THE SCHOOLS WAS I WAS NOTICING CHILDREN NOT HAVING AN OPPORTUNITY TO EXPLORE OPTIONS FOR, UH, NOT ONLY CREATIVITY WITH SELF-EXPRESSION.
UH, WE'RE DEALING WITH, YOU KNOW, A CRISIS WITHIN OUR YOUTH COMMUNITY RIGHT NOW WHEN IT COMES DOWN TO THE ES OF SOCIAL MEDIA AND THE PRESSURES THAT THEY'RE FACING JUST FROM THE WAY THAT THE WORLD IS CONSTANTLY CHANGING AROUND THEM AND THAT IT'S NOT MADE FOR THEM TO HAVE THE ROOM AND THE SPACE TO TRULY EXPLORE AND BECOME WHO THEY ARE AS ARTISTS.
HA IS PROVIDING THOSE OPPORTUNITIES AT AN AMAZING RATE.
I'M ACTUALLY STARTING TO SEE YOUNGER AND YOUNGER APPLICANTS EACH YEAR.
I WAS FIRST AWARD IN 2022 AND HAD THE OPPORTUNITY TO MENTOR A YOUNG MAN, UM, HIS NAME IS MIKE C, WHO STARTED AN ACTUAL CLOTHING BRAND OFF OF AN HA, A GRANT, AND WAS ABLE TO DISTRIBUTE THAT CLOTHING BRAND.
THAT CLOTHING BRAND IS NOW IN COLLABORATION WITH A LOT OF THE BURGEONING ARTISTS COMING OUT OF THE CITY WITHIN THE MUSIC SCENE, BUT ALSO WITHIN THE FASHION SCENE.
AND ALLOWING MORE OF THESE STORIES TO COME TO LIGHT, ALLOWING MORE OF THESE OPPORTUNITIES FOR PEOPLE TO BE SEEN THAT MIGHT NOT NORMALLY BE SEEN, BUT ALSO WHEN YOU'RE HAVING PEOPLE COME IN FROM OTHER PLACES, ALLOWING THEM TO HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO SEE IN CONTEXT WHAT HOUSTON TRULY IS AS AN INTERNATIONAL HUB, BUT NOT JUST AN INTERNATIONAL HUB.
WE ARE THE TASTE MAKERS FOR THE REST OF THE UNITED STATES, WHETHER ANYONE WANTS TO BELIEVE THAT OR NOT.
ANY PERSON THAT'S BASICALLY MOVED OUT OF THIS PLACE AND HAS GONE ON TO DO AMAZING THINGS IN THE REST OF THE WORLD HAS IMPACTED CULTURE GLOBALLY, NOT JUST HERE IN THE UNITED STATES.
SO THE INVESTMENT IN THE NEXT GENERATION THAT'S ABOUT TO COME, AND THE NEXT GENERATION OF ARTISTS AND YOUNG PROFESSIONALS AND CREATIVES THROUGH THESE GRANTS AND THROUGH THIS FUNDING IS ESSENTIAL FOR US ON A WORLD STAGE AND HOW WE'RE VIEWED RIGHT NOW.
WE HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY RIGHT HERE FROM THIS CITY TO BE VIEWED IN A WAY IN WHICH, YOU KNOW, OUR, A LOT OF OUR, UM, OUR YOUTH ARE SUBVERTED IN TERMS OF HOW THEY'RE SEEN THROUGHOUT THE REST OF THE WORLD.
I KNOW MY TIME IS UP, BUT I WANT TO THANK YOU ALL FOR THIS OPPORTUNITY.
I'M ALSO THANK YOU ALL FOR YOUR SUPPORT FOR HOUSTON ARTISTS AND THE YOUTH WITHIN THE CITY.
THANK YOU FOR YOUR COMMENTS TODAY AND, AND SHARING THOSE STORIES, THOSE INSIGHTS.
HELLO, GOOD AFTERNOON, COUNCIL MEMBERS AND ALL OF MY FELLOW ARTS, UM, LOVERS AND EMPLOYEES.
MY NAME IS CLAIRE PAGEANT HAVENS, UM, AND I'M HONORED TO BE HERE TODAY AS A REPRESENTATIVE HOUSTON GRAND OPERA.
UM, WE'D LOVE TO EXPRESS OUR GRATITUDE TO THE INCREDIBLE WORK THAT TAYLOR AND MICHELLE HAVE BEEN DOING, UM, FOR, AND WE ARE HERE FOR THE OVERWHELMING SUPPORT OF, UM, RENEWING THE CITY'S CONTRACT WITH YOUTH AND ARTS ALLIANCE FOR THE DISTRIBUTION OF THE HOTEL OCCUPANCY TAX FUNDS.
AND YOU'LL BE HEARING FROM US AGAIN WHEN THAT IS ON THE AGENDA FOR THE OFFICIAL APPROVAL.
UM, BUT I JUST WANTED TO SHARE A LITTLE BIT ABOUT WHAT MY FIRST IMPRESSION OF HOUSTON ACTUALLY WAS.
UM, I CAME AS A CULTURAL TOURIST.
I CAME TO EXPERIENCE HOUSTON'S EXTRAORDINARY ART SCENES, THE SCENE, THE OPERA, THE SYMPHONY, THE BALLET, THE MUSEUMS. AND I KEPT COMING BACK YEAR AFTER YEAR BECAUSE IT QUICKLY BECAME APPARENT TO ME THAT HOUSTON WAS A CITY INVESTING BOLDLY IN CULTURE AND CREATIVITY.
TODAY, I AM PROUD TO BE COUNTED AMONG THE MORE THAN 1300 INDIVIDUALS EMPLOYED ANNUALLY BY HOUSTON GRAND OPERA.
THAT JOURNEY FROM VISITOR TO RESIDENT, FROM AUDIENCE MEMBER TO ARTS WORKER IS A STORY THAT IS FAR FROM UNIQUE AND IS EXACTLY WHY THE HOT TAX FUNDS MATTER.
HOUSTON'S LEGACY ARTS ORGANIZATIONS AND THE LARGER ECOSYSTEM THAT SURROUNDS IT IS NOT SIMPLY AN AMENITY.
WE ARE MAJOR ECONOMIC DRIVERS AND GLOBAL AMBASSADORS FOR THE CITY.
WE ATTRACT VISITORS, FILL HOTEL ROOMS, SUPPORT RESTAURANTS AND SMALL BUSINESSES, AND CREATE JOBS ACROSS COUNTLESS INDUSTRIES.
HOUSTON'S NONPROFIT ARTS AND CULTURE, SEC CULTURE ORGANIZATIONS AND THEIR AUDIENCES SUPPORT 20,000 FULL-TIME JOBS AND GENERATE 1.3 BILLION IN ECONOMIC ACTIVITY ANNUALLY, PRODUCING MORE THAN 32 MILLION IN LOCAL TAX REVENUE ALONE, HGO, EMPLOYEE SINGERS, ORCHESTRA MUSICIANS, CARPENTERS, ELECTRICIANS, EDUCATORS, ADMINISTRATORS, AND COUNTLESS OTHER HIGH, HIGHLY SKILLED PROFESSIONALS.
TOGETHER, WE ENRICHED THE LIVES OF MORE THAN 200,000 PEOPLE ANNUALLY ACROSS NEARLY 50 50 REVENUES THROUGHOUT THE CITY.
AND HOUSTON'S CULTURAL INFLUENCE REACHES FAR BEYOND OUR REGION.
[01:05:01]
A GLOBAL BRAND IN CLASSICAL MUSIC AND ONE OF THE WORLD'S LEADING PRODUCERS OF NEW AMERICAN OPERA.WE BRING THE WORLD TO HOUSTON AND WE EXPORT HOUSTON'S NAME AROUND THE GLOBE THROUGH OUR PRODUCTIONS, THROUGH OUR ARTISTS, AND THROUGH OUR PARTNERSHIPS.
SINCE THE PANDEMIC, HGO ALONE HAS ATTRACT THOUSANDS OF TICKER BUYERS FROM OVER 25 STATES AND 33 COUNTRIES, AND WE HAVE LIVE STREAM PERFORMANCES WORLDWIDE, WELCOMING ARTISTS AND AUDIENCES FROM EVERY CORNER OF THE GLOBE.
OUR SISTER ORGANIZATIONS IN THIS ROOM AND IN THE COMMUNITY AROUND US, SHARE AND BOAST SIMILAR STATS.
OUR 2026 GRAMMY AWARD FOR BEST OPERA RECORDING FOR INTELLIGENCE.
FURTHER CAPTURE CAP CALCULATED HOUSTON ONTO THE INTERNATIONAL STAGE, AFFIRMING OUR CITY AS A BEACON FOR CREATIVITY, INNOVATION, AND ARTISTIC EXCELLENCE AT A TIME WHEN MANY ARTS ORGANIZATIONS ACROSS THE COUNTRY ARE STRUGGLING AND CITIES ARE PULLING BACK FUNDING.
HOUSTON CONTINUES TO LEAD FOR THE VERY REASON PEOPLE RETURN TIME AND TIME AGAIN.
HOUSTON LEADS BECAUSE WE UNDERSTAND THAT ARTS AND CULTURE ARE ESSENTIAL, ESSENTIAL TO ECONOMIC VITALITY, TOURISM, TALENT, RECRUITMENT, AND QUALITY OF LIFE.
THE STEADFAST SUPPORT OF HOUSTON CIVIC LEADERS HAS MADE THAT SUCCESS POSSIBLE AND CONTINUED INVESTMENT THROUGH THE HEART.
HOUSTON ARTS ALLIANCE IS CRITICAL TO SUSTAINING THIS WONDERFUL CYCLE.
AN INVESTMENT IN THE ARTS IS AN INVESTMENT IN THE FUTURE OF HOUSTON, AND WE ARE SO GRATEFUL FOR YOU AND YOUR SUPPORT.
THANK YOU CLAIRE, FOR BEING HERE TODAY AND FOR THE COMMENTS.
OUR NEXT SPEAKER IS ALLISON HALL.
HELLO EVERYONE, EVERYONE HERE.
THANK YOU FOR THIS SPACE AND THIS OPPORTUNITY TO SPEAK.
I'M THE EDUCATION CHAIR OF COMPANY ON STAGE.
UM, PERHAPS WE BROUGHT A TEAM WITH US.
I HAVE BEEN FOR THE LAST FIVE YEARS.
I HAVE TAUGHT IN BOTH, UM, NONPROFIT PROGRAMS SUCH AS PARA HOUSTON, UH, RAH RAH, SUMMER CAMPS.
UM, I CURRENTLY TEACH AT UNIVERSITY OF HOUSTON CLEAR LAKES ART SCHOOL FOR CHILDREN AND YOUNG ADULTS.
AND I'D LIKE TO SHARE A LITTLE BIT MORE ABOUT LIBRARY DAYS THAT CATHERINE ADDRESSED IN HER TIME.
UM, OUR MOST RECENT LIBRARY DAY, WE WERE ABLE TO PARTNER WITH ANOTHER NONPROFIT, BRIGHT LIKE LUCY, WHICH HER, UM, STARTED, WHICH IS A NONPROFIT IN DEDICATION TO LUCY DILLON.
A PREVIOUS STUDENT THAT I HAD IN MY THEATER CLASSES WHO WAS A VICTIM OF CAMP MYSTIC AND HER FAMILY STARTED THE NONPROFIT IN HER HONOR, AND WE WERE ABLE TO DEDICATE A LIBRARY DAY FULL PRODUCTION TO HER AND HAVE A CRAFT INSPIRED BY HER INTERESTS.
AND WITH CONTINUED FUNDING, WE WOULD BE ABLE TO INTRODUCE MORE NONPROFITS TO OUR AUDIENCES AT OUR LIBRARY DAY EVENTS.
UM, ALL THE TIMES THAT I'VE BEEN TEACHING THEATER ARTS TO YOUNG CHILDREN, I LIKE TO TELL PEOPLE IT'S ALMOST LIKE REVERSED THEATER, WHERE INSTEAD OF WITH ADULTS, WE TAKE TRAINED ACTORS WITH KNOWLEDGE AND SKILLS, BUT WITH THEATER EDUCATION FOR CHILDREN, WE KIND OF USE THEATER TO TEACH THOSE KNOWLEDGE AND SKILLS.
AND NOT EVERY SINGLE STUDENT THAT COMES INTO OUR PROGRAM WILL CONTINUE TO BE A THEATER ARTIST, BUT THEY WILL GROW UP TO BE TEACHERS AND DOCTORS AND COMMUNITY ORGANIZERS AND EVEN COUNCIL MEMBERS.
UM, RIGHT NOW WE HAVE OVER 120 SCHOOLS IN HOUSTON ACROSS PUBLIC TO PRIVATE THAT INTRODUCED THEATER INTO THEIR PROGRAMS. UM, WHEN I WAS IN MIDDLE SCHOOL, WE DIDN'T HAVE ONE ACT PLAY COMPETITIONS THAT WAS KIND OF RESERVED TO HIGH SCHOOLS, BUT RIGHT NOW WE HAVE BOTH MIDDLE SCHOOLS AND HIGH SCHOOLS THAT, UM, COMPETE WITH THEATER ACROSS TEXAS.
UM, AND WHAT ELSE WAS I GONNA SAY?
UM, SO A LOT OF OTHER LARGER THEATERS HAVE PAY TO PLAY SYSTEM WHERE THEY, WHERE FAMILIES WILL, UM, PAY A LARGE FEE IN ORDER TO OFFER THAT THEATER EDUCATION.
BUT ON COMPANY, ON STAGE, WE WOULD BE ABLE TO OFFER THAT AT A MORE ACCESSIBLE PRICE TO FAMILIES.
JUST THIS YEAR, JUST THIS SEASON, WE HAVE HAD MORE FAMILIES ACT TOGETHER IN OUR PRODUCTIONS.
UM, IN OUR MOST RECENT PRODUCTION OF JUNIE B JONES, WE'VE HAD A FATHER AND SON ACT TOGETHER ON STAGE, WHICH IS REALLY COOL AND A LOT OF FUN.
AND, UH, APPRECIATE YOUR COMMENTS TODAY.
OUR NEXT SPEAKER IS PAUL ROBINSON.
[01:10:06]
OH, HELLO EVERYONE.I HAVE NOTES AND I HAVE A DHD.
I'M PAUL ROBINSON, AKA A MAJOR
I'VE COME TODAY TO DO MY CIVIC DUTY AS A NATIVE HOUSTONIAN AND AS A HOMEGROWN ARTIST WHO IS ABSOLUTELY IN LOVE WITH THE CITY, THAT NOT ONLY RAISED ME, INFORMED ME INTO THE WORLD CLASS ENTERTAINER AND POWERHOUSE VOCALIST I AM, BUT HAS ALSO COMMITTED ME TO THE POSSIBILITY OF HOUSTON BEING THE INTERNATIONAL CITY.
IT ALREADY IS THAT, UM, WE'VE BEEN TALKING ABOUT IT FOR YEARS.
UM, I WILL ALSO BE PERFORMING AT, I THINK I DELETED SOMETHING.
I'LL ALSO BE PERFORMING AT FIFA.
UH, MY BAND GOT THROUGH THE AUDITION, SO WE'RE VERY EXCITED.
I THINK WHAT I CAME TO SAY IS THAT IT'S SUPER IMPORTANT FOR US TO DO WHATEVER IT TAKES TO KEEP WHATEVER COMMUNICATION OPEN THAT WE NEED TO, TO MAKE SURE YOU ALL WERE TALKING ABOUT THE THING THAT YOU FOUND OUT ABOUT LATER.
THE LACK, THE ISSUE WITH HOUSTON IS WE'RE SO SPREAD OUT.
AND I JUST THINK THAT WE HAVE SUCH POTENTIAL TO BE EXACTLY WHAT I KNOW WE ARE.
I'VE SANG BACK UP FOR THE SUFFERS FOR 11 YEARS.
I'VE BEEN A PART OF SOME OF THE BIGGEST EVENTS IN THIS CITY, AND I KNOW WHAT THIS CITY CAN BE.
AND I GUESS WHAT I'M JUST SAYING IS THAT IF WE KEEP THE COMMUNICATION OPEN AND, AND THAT EVERY DISTRICT IS, IS, IS REPRESENTED AND EVERY HOUSTONIAN IS REPRESENTED, THAT I FEEL LIKE PEOPLE CAN THEN TAKE OWNERSHIP OF THE COMMUNITY AS FAR AS MUSIC AND ART AND CULTURE.
I FEEL LIKE THERE'S A PLACE THAT WE SHOULD BE BEYOND WHERE WE ARE NOW.
WE HAVE THE INFRASTRUCTURE, WE HAVE THE POSSIBILITY, WE HAVE SO MANY PEOPLE, PEOPLE MOVE HERE, ARTISTS ARE MOVING HERE.
AND I, I THINK THAT'S WHAT I'M SAYING.
I, I THOUGHT THIS WAS GONNA BE ABOUT SOMETHING ELSE, BUT I GUESS I'M JUST SAYING LET'S KEEP THE COMMUNICATION OPEN.
AND I'M REALLY HONORED TO BE HERE TODAY BECAUSE NOW IT LETS ME KNOW THAT I CAN BE MORE A PART OF THE CONVERSATION OR THE PROCESS OF MAYBE BEING A FACE THAT YOU ALL CAN SEE, UH, A LIAISON, IF YOU WILL.
I KNOW WORDS, UH, WHERE WE CAN CONTINUE TO BUILD BECAUSE I DON'T WANT THE NEXT YOUNG WIDE-EYED BOY THAT I WAS AT 19.
I'M 40, 44 ON JUNE 30TH, RUNNING AROUND LOOKING FOR AN OPPORTUNITY THAT IS NOT THERE.
WE MUST FUND THE ARTS AND IT, IT MUST BE DISTRIBUTED EVENLY.
SO THE NEXT CHILD COMING UP CAN HAVE A CHANCE.
WE HAVE A, A QUESTION FOR YOU.
UM, THANK YOU FOR YOUR COMMENTS.
AT, AT ANY OF OUR COMMITTEE MEETINGS, UM, STAFF FROM COUNCIL MEMBER RAMIREZ WOULD LIKE TO ASK YOU A QUESTION.
UM, IT WASN'T A QUESTION, IT WAS JUST A CONGRATS ON THE FIFA GIVE GATE.
OUR NEXT SPEAKER IS, UH, I'M, I'M GONNA GO WITH ANGIE FINN.
UM, THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR THE WORK YOU'RE DOING TODAY FOR ARTS AND CULTURE IN HOUSTON COUNCIL MEMBERS AND STAFF OF THE COUNCIL.
I'M MS. JACKSON FOR THE WORK THAT YOU DO FOR THE, FOR US AS WELL.
I'M HERE TODAY, UH, AS A MEMBER OF THE BOARD OF THE HOBBY CENTER FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS.
I'VE SERVED ON THE BOARD FOR NEARLY A DECADE.
UM, I ALSO HAVE WITH ME SOME OF OUR VERY HARDWORKING STAFF REPRESENTING THE HOBBY CENTER AS WELL.
SINCE I CAME TO HOUSTON IN 1979 TO BE AN APPRENTICE AT THE ALLEY THEATER.
I'VE BEEN WORKING IN PERFORMING ARTS IN HOUSTON PROFESSIONALLY AND AS A VOLUNTEER, I PLAYED A ROLE IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE HOBBY CENTER WHEN I WAS WORKING FOR PATIENT ENTERTAINMENT AT THE TIME.
PREVIOUS TO THAT, I WAS, UH, AT THE ALLEY.
I WAS ALSO THE, IN A LEADERSHIP ROLE AT THEATER OF THE STARS AND THE FIRST DIRECTOR OF THE HOUSTON THEATER DISTRICT.
IT'S BEEN EXCITING TO BE PART OF THE HOBBY CENTER OVER THE PAST FEW YEARS BECAUSE WE'VE INCREASED OUR ROLE IN AND OUR IMPACT ON HOUSTON'S PERFORMING ARTS.
WE'VE GONE FROM BEING PRIMARILY A VENUE TO BECOMING A MAJOR PERFORMING ARTS ORGANIZATION WITH ARTISTIC AND EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMMING PRESENTED BY THE HOBBY CENTER.
THE HOBBY CENTER'S, A GRANT RECIPIENT OF FUNDING FROM THE CITY OF HOUSTON THROUGH THE HOUSTON ARTS ALLIANCE, AS PART OF YOUR SUPPORT FOR ORGANIZATIONS PROGRAM HE ADMINISTERED THROUGH THE CONTRACT THAT YOU ALL ARE CONSIDERING AND DISCUSSING TODAY.
THIS FUNDING HAS HELPED ACTIVATE NEW PROGRAMMING FOR US ACROSS MANY PERFORMING SPACES THAT IS DRIVING
[01:15:01]
CULTURAL TOURISM TO OUR CITY.IN ADDITION TO WELCOMING, WELCOMING OVER 200,000 AUDIENCE MEMBERS FOR THE HUGELY POPULAR BROADWAY SERIES, UH, INCLUDING MANY ATTENDEES FROM OUTSIDE OF OUR CITY AND OUR REGION FUNDING, UH, HAS ALSO SUPPORTED PROGRAMS LIKE THIS SEASON'S PRESENTATION OF JAZZ AT THE LINCOLN CENTER WITH WYNTON MARAL, AS WELL AS PRESENTING BROADWAY LEGENDS LIKE BURNETT, BERNADETTE PETERS AND SUTTON FOSTER IN CONCERT.
THE HOUSTON ARTS ALLIANCE HAS BEEN AN EVER STRONGER LEADER IN THE COMMUNITY.
THEY'RE CONTINUING TO EVOLVE THEIR GRANT MAKING SYSTEMS AND PROCESSES TO MEET OUR COMMUNITY NEEDS.
AND THEIR CRITICAL STEWARD, AS YOU WELL KNOW OF THIS CITY'S SUPPORT.
THE HOBBY CENTER IS HERE TODAY TO SUPPORT THE CONTRACT RENEWAL THAT WILL BE REVIEWED BY YOU ALL IN JUNE.
AND WE'RE FORTUNATE TO LIVE IN A CITY AND THANKFUL FOR THE SUPPORT THAT THE CITY GIVES TO THE ROBUST SUPPORTIVE ARTS INFRASTRUCTURE AND THE HOT TAX FUNDING SYSTEM IS OF COURSE AN IMPORTANT COMPONENT OF THAT.
SO THANK YOU FOR LETTING US BE HERE TODAY.
THANK YOU FOR BEING HERE FOR YOUR COMMENTS AND TO YOUR TEAM THAT'S HERE THAT HELP, UH, MAKE ALL THE WORK HAPPEN AT THE HOBBY CENTER.
OUR NEXT SPEAKER IS JASON OLIVER.
UH, I MANAGE THE THIRD WARD CULTURAL DISTRICT, UH, WHICH EXISTS TO PROTECT, PRESERVE, INSPIRE, AND SHARE THE ARTISTIC AND CULTURAL LEGACY OF THE HISTORIC THIRD WARD.
UM, I WANT TO FIRST SAY, UH, THAT THAT MURAL PROJECT THAT THAT CAME UP, LIKE WHERE ONE OF THE PARTNERS, THE CULTURAL DISTRICTS ARE.
WE GOT AN EMAIL ABOUT A WEEK AGO, BUT I THINK THAT THE QUICK TURNAROUND FOR THAT JUST REALLY SHOWS HOW EXCITED AND HOW QUICKLY THAT THE ARTS ARE WILLING TO MOBILIZE WHEN WE'RE REACHED OUT TO ABOUT, UH, ABOUT THESE TYPES OF PROJECTS.
SO JUST AN EXAMPLE OF LIKE WHEN PEOPLE CALL, WE COME RUNNING BECAUSE THE ARTS REALLY WANT TO BE ENGAGED IN THESE TYPES OF LARGE SCALE PROJECTS.
NOT JUST FIFA, BUT OTHER BIG EVENTS THAT ARE COMING TO THE CITY.
I WANNA EXPRESS MY APPRECIATION TO, UH, THE HOUSTON ARTS ALLIANCE AND THE OFFICE OF THE ARTS.
WE ARE RELATIVELY THE, THE CULTURAL DISTRICT.
AND THIRD WARD IS ONE OF THE RELATIVELY NEW GRANTEES FROM HAA AND
'CAUSE I'M TELLING PEOPLE TO APPLY AND, AND TO APPLY TO SERVE ON THE GRANTS PANEL.
SO I'M ACTIVELY ENCOURAGING PEOPLE TO, YOU KNOW, INCREASE, UH, HA'S WORKLOAD.
SO I GREATLY, GREATLY APPRECIATE, UM, THAT THEY'RE COMING TO REQUEST MORE SUPPORT FOR THE WORK.
THE, THE GREAT WORK THAT THEY'RE DOING WITH MORE APPLICANTS MEANS THAT THERE'S A GREATER DEMAND.
SO THEY'RE INCREASING THE QUANTITY AND QUALITY OF THESE PROJECTS.
IT MEANS THERE'S A GREATER DEMAND FOR FUNDING.
I KNOW VERY WELL THE, THE BUDGETARY CONSTRAINTS THAT, THAT THE CITY IS DEALING WITH, BUT I WANNA REALLY THINK ABOUT NOT JUST THE, THE OVERALL HOT ALLOCATION AND HOW WE MIGHT RETHINK THE WAYS THAT THAT ENTIRE ALLOCATION, UM, IS, IS DISTRIBUTED, BUT LOOKING AT WHERE MIGHT WE FIND SOME, SOME MORE, UM, SOURCES OF FUNDING THAT, THAT AREN'T AS DISASTER PRONE, UH, THAN LIKE HOT TAXES.
BECAUSE THAT IS A REAL CHALLENGE FOR OUR ARTISTS AND ARTS ORGANIZATIONS HERE IN THE CITY, ESPECIALLY WHEN WE SEE THAT EACH DOLLAR LIKE TAYLOR SHOWED IN THE PRESENTATION, UH, RETURNS $28 IN ECONOMIC ACTIVITY IN THE CITY.
SO, UH, TO CLOSE OUT, I'LL MENTION, BECAUSE WE'RE ABOUT TWO WEEKS OUT FROM THE CITYWIDE JUNETEENTH HOUSTON FESTIVAL.
PEOPLE MIGHT HAVE SEEN THE, THE PRESS CONFERENCE THAT WE DID HERE AT CITY HALL RECENTLY.
UH, MAKING AN INVITATION TO COUNCIL YOUR STAFF AND THEN ANYBODY WHO'S LISTENING HERE, UH, TO THE, TO THE COUNCIL COMMITTEE MEETING TO JOIN US ON JUNE 6TH AT EMANCIPATION PARK.
UH, IT'S FREE AND OPEN TO THE PUBLIC, JUST LIKE MANY OF OUR EVENTS IN THIRD WARD AND ACROSS THE CITY.
BUT I'M HERE ON BEHALF OF THIRD WARD.
AND I'LL ALSO ENCOURAGE PEOPLE TO VISIT THE JUNETEENTH HOUSTON WEBSITE BECAUSE WE HAVE EVENTS THAT ARE TAKING PLACE ACROSS THE CITY CELEBRATING JUNETEENTH THROUGHOUT THE, THE SEASON.
SO WE'RE KICKING OFF THE SEASON ON JUNE 6TH AT EMANCIPATION PARK AND THIRD WARD, BUT GO EVERYWHERE ELSE.
THANK YOU JASON, FOR YOUR COMMENTS.
OUR NEXT SPEAKER IS CRYSTAL TOUSSANT.
I'M CRYSTAL TOUSSANT AND I AM A MEMBER AT LARGE FOR, UM, BOARD MEMBER FOR COMPANY ON STAGE THEATER.
[01:20:01]
I'M ALSO A 20 PLUS YEAR THEATER ARTS EDUCATOR, A PREVIOUS WINNER OF THE HOUSTON ARTS ALLIANCE GRANT, AS WELL AS A NATIVE HOUSTONIAN WHO HAS BEEN A LIFELONG ARTIST.UM, I SPECIFICALLY DO WANNA SAY THANK YOU TO THE HOUSTON ARTS ALLIANCE BECAUSE I HAVE SEEN THE GROWTH OVER MANY YEARS.
I DO FEEL LIKE THERE'S MUCH MORE SUPPORT FOR ARTISTS TO UNDERSTAND WHAT THEY NEED TO DO IN ORDER TO GET THE GRANTS, AND THAT'S WHY THERE HAS BEEN A MAJOR GROWTH IN THE AMOUNT OF GRANTS THAT ARE BEING RECEIVED.
BUT I DO HAVE TO SAY AS WELL THAT I ATTENDED, UM, BEFORE MAYOR WHITMEYER, UM, WAS ELECTED, UM, DEBATE ON THE ARTS THAT WAS DONE DURING THE TIME THEY RAN FOR OFFICE.
AND ONE OF THE THINGS THAT HE SPECIFICALLY TALKED ABOUT WAS GIVING MORE FUNDING TO PUBLIC SCHOOLS TO ACTUALLY TAKE THEIR STUDENTS TO SEE SHOWS AND HIT UPON THE FACT OF WHAT CATHERINE DID PREVIOUSLY IS THAT A LOT OF OUR STUDENTS CAN'T AFFORD TO GO TO SHOWS.
AND I THINK THAT HE NEEDS TO, UM, YOU KNOW, DO THAT.
'CAUSE I HAVEN'T SEEN THAT AS AN EDUCATOR WHO ACTUALLY, UM, TOOK MY CHILDREN TO, UM, COMPANY ON STAGE THEATER TO SEE JUNIE B, WHICH SHE MENTIONED, UM, THEY PAID FOR THEIR FOOD AND I WAS ABLE TO WORK WITH CASE FOR SCHOOLS, WHICH IS CONNECTED TO SOME FUNDING TO PAY FOR THEIR TICKETS.
BUT I THINK THERE SHOULD BE A DIRECT WAY BECAUSE I HAVE ALWAYS WORKED IN TITLE ONE SCHOOLS AND OFTEN THAT FUNDING ISN'T THERE.
I'VE ALSO BEEN AN EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR FOR A NON A ARTS NONPROFIT WHERE WE WON THE ORGANIZATION GRANT AND WAS AWARDED $750 WHEN THE ENSEMBLE THEATER OR THE ALLEY THEATER WERE GIVEN THOUSANDS AND THOUSANDS AND THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS BECAUSE OF THE FORMULAS WHICH WERE CREATED TO DECIDE HOW THOSE FUNDS ARE ALLOCATED.
BUT AGAIN, AS CATHERINE STATED, WE'RE NOT GONNA BE ABLE TO COMPETE WITH THOSE ORGANIZATIONS BECAUSE WE DON'T HAVE THE LEVEL OF BUDGET THAT THOSE ORGANIZATIONS HAVE.
BUT THE FACT THAT COMPANY ON STAGE THEATER HAS BEEN IN EXISTENCE SINCE 1978 MERITS THE FACT THAT WE ARE WORTHY OF RECEIVING MORE FUNDING AND WE DESERVE TO GET THAT.
AND AS SOMEONE WHO HAS ALWAYS KNOWN SINCE I WAS A 5-YEAR-OLD CHILD, I WAS SNOW WHITE AND SNOW WHITE IN THE SEVENTH DWARFS AT ALCOA ELEMENTARY IN FIFTH GRADE.
THAT'S HOW LONG I'VE BEEN AN ARTIST.
I'VE ALWAYS KNOWN THAT THIS WAS MY CALLING, THIS WAS MY PASSION.
WE DESERVE TO GET FUNDING THAT ALLOWS FOR KIDS WHO GREW UP IN SOUTH PARK LIKE ME, TO BE ABLE TO FIND THAT WAY TO BE A PROFESSIONAL.
AND I'VE WORKED THE ACADEMY AWARDS, THE 96 OLYMPICS.
I'VE HAD A FULL CAREER EVEN BEFORE I BECAME A THEATER ARTS EDUCATOR.
AND I'M PRESENTLY GETTING MY, UH, MASTER'S FROM THE TEXAS SOUTHERN UNIVERSITY IN PROFESSIONAL COMMUNICATIONS AND DIGITAL MEDIA.
I WILL CONTINUE MY FILMMAKING AS A FILMMAKER AND AS AN ARTS EDUCATOR.
CRYSTAL, LET ME ASK YOU, UM, THE CASE FUNDING THAT YOU GOT, WAS THAT TIED TO AN AFTERSCHOOL PROGRAM? IT WAS ABSOLUTELY.
AND I ALSO WANNA MENTION THAT COUNCIL MEMBER, DR.
CAROLYN, EVAN SHABAZZ, HAS ACTUALLY DONATED TO COMPANY ONSTAGE THEATER AS WELL AS COME TO SEE ONE OF OUR SHOWS.
I HAVE INVITED OUR COUNCIL MEMBER, UM, EDWARD POLLARD TO COME OUT.
HE JUST HASN'T HAD A CHANCE, BUT HE IS A PART OUR, UM, HE'S IN OUR DISTRICT WHERE WE'RE LOCATED NOW.
AND I'VE ALSO INVITED, UM, MAYA PROTE, UM, CATHERINE, UM, EXCUSE ME, MARTHA ACOS TO COME AS WELL, BECAUSE WHERE WE WERE LOCATED WAS IN HER DISTRICT AND WE WILL BE MOVING BACK TO HER DISTRICT WITH OUR BUILDING THAT'S A PART OF THE BRAS OAKS MANAGEMENT.
UH, SO WE REALLY WOULD LIKE THE SUPPORT OF THE CITY SO THAT WE CAN CELEBRATE EVEN MORE YEARS AT COMPANY ON STAGE THEATER.
WELL, I'LL HAVE SOMEONE ON MY TEAM REACH OUT TO Y'ALL ABOUT THE, THE AFTERSCHOOL PROGRAM COMPONENT.
THAT'S ONE THING I WANT TO FOLLOW UP ON.
I APPRECIATE THAT BECAUSE, UM, COUNCIL MEMBER POLLARD'S, CHIEF OF STAFF WAS THE ONE WHO ACTUALLY SUGGESTED, HEY, TAP INTO THAT.
SO I DO WANNA GIVE, UM, HIS CHIEF OF STAFF CREDIT FOR THAT.
WE JUST HAVEN'T BEEN ABLE TO CONNECT WITH THEM TO GET SOME OF THEIR FUNDING WITHIN THAT, BUT WE WORKING ON IT.
[01:25:01]
OUR NEXT SPEAKER, JOSE DIAZ.THE STUDENT DISTINGUISHED MEMBERS OF THE ARTS AND CULTURE COMMITTEE, AND I'M HERE IN SUPPORT OF THE COURSE OF HAA AND ALL THE INCREDIBLE WORK THEY HAVE DONE THROUGHOUT THE CITY.
AND, AND ALSO, UH, LIKE TO CONGRATULATE, UH, TAYLOR FOR SUCH A GREAT WORK THAT SHE'S DOES, UH, HEADING HAA, UM, MY NAME IS JOSE ANTONIO DIAZ.
I'M THE FOUNDER OF AN ARTISTIC DIRECTOR OF JEWISH MUSIC INSTITUTE, A HOUSTON BASED NONPROFIT DEDICATED TO TRANSFORMING LIVES TO MUSIC, EDUCATION, MENTORSHIP, AND PERFORMANCE OPPORTUNITIES FOR YOUNG PEOPLE ACROSS OUR COMMUNITY.
THIS YEAR HAS BEEN ONE OF MOST IMPACTFUL IN OUR ORGANIZATION HISTORY.
OUR AWARD-WINNING YOUTH GROUP CALLED LEANTE RECEIVED NATIONAL RECOGNITION TO PRESTIGIOUS DOWN B STEWART MUSIC AWARD, OFTEN CONSIDERED TO BE THE GRAMMYS OF MUSIC EDUCATION, CONTINUING TRADITIONS OF EXCELLENCE THAT HAS PLACED HOUSTON ON THE NATIONAL STAGE FOR JAZZ AND LATIN MUSIC EDUCATION AND PERFORMANCES.
IN ADDITION, ONE OF OUR YOUNGEST STUDENTS, UH, JOY DIAZ, EARNED AN INDIVIDUAL DOWN BE AWARD IN THE JUNIOR HIGH DIVISION.
HE'S IN SEVENTH GRADE AND 13-YEAR-OLD, AN INCREDIBLE ACHIEVEMENT FOR SUCH A YOUNG MUSICIAN.
UH, IN ADDITION, UH, CALIENTE, UH, HAS AUDITIONED THROUGH A NATIONAL COMPETITIVE, UM, EVENT TO PARTICIPATE IN THE MIDWEST CLINIC, WHICH IS THE TOP, UH, MUSIC EDUCATION, UM, PERFORMANCE, UH, CONFERENCE IN THE WORLD.
AND ALSO THEY WERE FEATURED AT THE JAZZ EDUCATION NETWORK CONFERENCE IN NEW ORLEANS AS THE TOP YOUTH GROUP IN THE NATION.
THIS YEAR, DS MUSIC INSTITUTE SERVE HUNDREDS OF STUDENTS THROUGHOUT YEAR-ROUND EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMMING, SOME MUSIC WORKSHOPS AFTER SCHOOL INSTRUCTION, MASTER CLASSES, AND LIVE PERFORMANCES THROUGHOUT THE HOUSTON AREA.
OUR PROGRAM PROVIDES STUDENTS WITH ACCESS TO PROFESSIONAL LEVEL MUSIC, EDUCATION, MENTORSHIP, AND CULTURAL EXPERIENCES.
AND THOSE CULTURAL EXPERIENCES INVOLVE, PERFORM WITH PROFESSIONAL MUSICIANS, UH, THAT MANY FAMILIES ALSO WOULDN'T BE ABLE TO AFFORD TO, UH, ATTEND OR EVEN SEND THE CHILDREN TO BE ABLE TO PARTICIPATE IN.
WE'RE ESPECIALLY PROUD OF OUR PARTNERSHIP WITH HOWARD ZERO, UH, SCHOOL FOR SUCCESS.
AND, UM, WE WERE ABLE TO WORK WITH THEM THROUGH THE, UH, THE CASE, UM, UH, CITY, UH, UH, CITY CASE, UM, PROGRAM.
AND IT'S A COLLABORATIVE MUSIC EDUCATION PROGRAM, MENTORSHIP THAT THEIR JAZZ AND SOUND HAS GROWN TO MISLEAD EARNING HONORS AT JAZZ VESSEL THROUGHOUT THE HOUSTON AREA.
WE'VE BEEN WORKING WITH RI UM, FOR THE LAST FOUR YEARS.
THIS IS A SCHOOL THAT'S 90% ECONOMICALLY DISADVANTAGED.
NONE OF THE SCHOOLS HAVE ANY, NONE OF THE STUDENTS IN SCHOOLS HAVE ANY, UM, UH, PRIVATE LESSONS WITH MUSIC, EDUCATION, ANYTHING LIKE THAT.
AND THROUGH THAT PARTNERSHIP, THE SUCCESS HAS NOW LED TO A NATIONAL RECOGNITION AS THE ENSEMBLE TO HAVE BEEN SELECTED TO PERFORM AS THE FEATURED ENSEMBLE AT THE MIDWEST CLINIC.
ONE OF THE MOST PRESTIGIOUS MUSIC EDUCATION CONFERENCE IN THE WORLD.
AND THAT'S JUST AN INCREDIBLE STORY FOR, FOR THOSE YOUNG PEOPLE, UM, IN, IN A COMMUNITY THAT'S TRULY UNDERSERVED.
IN ARTS, WE'RE ALSO ARE HONORED TO PRESENT PERFORMANCES OF OUR PROFESSIONAL ENSEMBLE, HOUSTON LATIN JAZZ ORCHESTRA, BRINGING WORLD CLASS, LATIN JAZZ, ALSO PROGRAM TO AUDIENCE ACROSS, UM, THE, UH, THE CITY.
UM, OUR WORKSHOPS, CONCERTS, FEATURE INTERNATIONAL RECOGNIZED ARTISTS, INCLUDING JEFF CORAN FROM THE DAVE MATTHEW BANDS, CARL ALLEN, UH, OSCAR KA, WITH JENNIFER LO, STER STAFF, AND MANY OTHERS AT DS MUSIC INSTITUTE.
WE BELIEVE THE ARTS ARE IN SESSION TO BUILDING STRONGER COMMUNITIES, CREATING OPPORTUNITIES FOR YOUNG PEOPLE, AND SHOWCASING INCREDIBLE TALENTS THAT EXIST RIGHT HERE IN HOUSTON.
THANK YOU FOR YOUR CONTINUED SUPPORT OF THE ARTS IN OUR CITY AND FOR ALLOWING US THE OPPORTUNITY TO POSSIBLY IMPACT LIVES OF HOUSTON YOUTH THROUGHOUT MUSIC.
THANK YOU FOR YOUR COMMENTS TODAY.
AND THAT WILL CONCLUDE OUR PUBLIC SPEAKERS.
UH, I WILL ADJOURN THE ARTS AND CULTURE COMMITTEE AT 3:30 PM AND WE WILL KEEP EVERYONE POSTED FOR OUR NEXT SCHEDULED ARTS AND CULTURE COMMITTEE MEETING.
THANK YOU ALL FOR BEING HERE TODAY.