Toronto City Council Votes Unanimously in Favour of Arts Funding

Help us congratulation the arts communities in Toronto which will now see a 40% increase in arts funding thanks to a unanimous vote from their City Council!  Read the press release distributed by the Toronto Arts Council on April 4th below to learn more.

April 4, 2013, Toronto  - This afternoon City Council voted unanimously to allocate $4 million in additional investment to Toronto Arts Council’s grants program and $2 million to other cultural programs.  This is an important first step towards realizing the City's commitment to $25 per capita arts funding.

John McKellar, Chair of Toronto Arts Council, responded to the news: "Congratulations to City Council for its great show of leadership in approving this important funding.  On behalf of Toronto Arts Council, I would like to recognize the Mayor, Councillors, and many individuals who volunteered their time over the years to secure this important investment in Toronto’s future."

Toronto Arts Council funds artists and arts organizations in every neighbourhood of the city through its grants programs.  In 2012, approximately $10.3 million was disbursed to 419 arts organizations and 272 individual artists following assessment of 1562 applications. Toronto Arts Council’s grant budget will increase to 14.3 million in 2013.

There is widespread public support for increased investment in the arts in Toronto.  In addition to contributing to a vibrant city that attracts people to live, to work and to visit, a strong arts sector is also perceived to bring powerful economic benefits to our businesses and neighbourhoods.

"Today marks a big step forward for the City’s creative capacity” said Claire Hopkinson, Director and CEO of Toronto Arts Council. "This new funding is also a catalyst for connecting more of Toronto to the arts, to making the city more vibrant, liveable and friendly.  It is an exciting day indeed.”

New funds for 2013 will have a far-reaching impact on TAC, Toronto’s artists and the city. A $4 million increase will give TAC the ability to begin to address funding inequities amongst currently funded organizations while also providing new support for culturally diverse arts organizations, youth, artists working in the inner suburbs and community engaged arts projects. Additional funding increases anticipated over the next three years will support TAC to develop new programs and assist with TAC goals of increasing accessibility to the arts throughout the entire city.

Toronto Arts Council thanks the arts, business and civic leaders who have worked with dedication over the years to ensure increased City Council support for arts grants. The road to successfully meeting this objective has been long and success is attributable to many individuals and groups including Creative Capital Gains Committee, BeautifulCity.ca, Friends of The Arts, TAPA, Business for the Arts and the Culture team at Toronto Economic Development and Culture whose policy work laid the foundation for  success. Many Councillors from all sides of Council chambers led the charge for increasing arts support- of  particular note are Councillor Gary Crawford, Councillor Michael Thompson, Councillor Shelley Carroll and TAC’s Councillor Board members who have worked hard over the years to keep arts funding on the agenda.

To read the original press release distributed by the Toronto Arts Council, click here.