One day after the 2010 Winter Olympics wrap up, Vancouver council will vote on 166 grants worth a total of $7,300,100 to cultural groups in the city.

A staff report on the agenda for the city services and budgets committee meeting on Monday (March 1), recommends councillors approve five operating grants worth a total of $3,933,200 to major exhibiting institutions, 94 operating grants to other groups totalling $2,849,950, and 67 project grants totalling $516,950.

In terms of the major exhibiting institutions, the Vancouver Art Gallery is set to receive $2,167,500, Museum of Vancouver $746,500, H.R. MacMillan Space Centre $524,400, Vancouver Maritime Museum Society $400,000, and Science World $94,800.

Out of the recommended operating grants to other groups, the largest would go to the Arts Club of Vancouver Theatre ($155,000), Vancouver International Children’s Festival Society ($126,500), and Vancouver East Cultural Centre ($110,000).

The biggest project grants are headed to the Vancouver International Dance Festival Society ($22,000) and DanceHouse (Seismic Shift Arts Society) ($20,000).

Eight affirmative votes are required to approve the grants.

If they are passed, $2,799,300 will be left in the city’s $10,099,400 cultural-grants budget for 2010.

According to the staff report, the assessment committee recommending the grants noted “2009 was an unprecedented year for the arts and cultural sector as it responded to the sudden and significant changes to provincial arts funding through BC Gaming and the current global and local economic crisis”.

“Despite these challenging times, the Committee was encouraged to see a sector with a strong collective voice as demonstrated through highly visible advocacy efforts,” the report states.

Sixteen applications for grants did not receive a recommendation from the committee.

These applications came from the Asian Canadian Special Events Association, Association of Book Publishers of B.C., Canadian Society for Asian Arts, Community Arts Council of Vancouver, First Weekend Club Film Society, Jewish Museum and Archives of B.C. (Jewish Historical Society of B.C.), Judith Marcuse PRs Society, Link Dance Foundation, Mothership Stories Society, Olio Festival Society, Proximity Arts Society, St. James Community Square Society, Theatre in the Raw Society, Theatre Under the Stars, Vancouver Asian Canadian Theatre, and Vancouver Drawing Festival Society.

According to the report, applications for the annual grants must be from Vancouver-based non-profit societies and are evaluated for artistic merit, organizational competence, community impact, and “Alignment and support of the City’s cultural vision and strategic cultural priorities”.

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