HomeMy WebLinkAbout100621 PTAC Meeting Packet
ARTS COMMISSION MEETING AGENDA
October 6, 2021 | 3:00 p.m. | Remote Meeting
****The State of Emergency declared by Governor Inslee temporarily prohibits in-person contacts
with the public required by the Open Public Meetings Act and the Public Records Act. The May 29,
2020 Public Health Order by Jefferson County Health Officer Thomas Locke also states no in-person
meetings are allowed. The Commission will be participating by teleconference****
Submit public comment emails to be read aloud (up to three minutes per person) to:
publiccomment@cityofpt.us or join in person via computer or tablet at http://joinwebinar.com
enter the 9 digit Webinar ID 539-393-595 or listen by phone only (listening mode only) United
States: +1 (415) 655-0052 access code: 155-675-573#
Local Dial In – (360) 390-5064 access code: 155-675-573#
I. Call to Order and Roll Call
II. Approval of Agenda
III. Approval of Minutes from the September 1, 2021 Meeting
IV. Public Comment (3 minutes per person)
V. Commission Business
A. Chair’s Update
B. Budget Update
C. Applications for Financial Support
1. Creatrix Compass – Podcast
2. Lindsey Wayland – Pick Up Poetry
3. Salish Sea Butoh – Fall Workshop & Performance Series
D. Commission Mission Statement
VI. Correspondence
VII. Set Agenda for Next Meeting
VIII. Next Scheduled Meeting – November 3, 2021 at 3:00 p.m.
IX. Adjourn
City of Port Townsend Arts Commission Application for Financial Support
Date of Application Sun, 08/15/2021 Organization Name Creatrix Compass Primary Contact Haden Starbuck Phone Number 360-643-1100
Email creatrixcompass@gmail.com Project or Event Name The Curious Creatrix Podcast
Event Location https://www.creatrixcompass.com/the-curious-creatrix-podcast Date(s) of Event ongoing Amount Requested $4000
Admission Charge NA Donations Accepted? Yes Is there at least one free or "pay what you wish" performance? Yes Total Budget? $4161/year Please attach the proposed budget for this event the_curious_creatrix_podcast_budget_.pdf
Has the venue for the event(s) been assessed as ADA accessible? No
Describe how your project will benefit and consider the diverse population of the greater Port Townsend community: I collect and share the stories of creatives and their journeys on my podcast, website and social media. I will feature any Port Townsend/local artist that wants to be featured. Our stories inspire others to play in their creativity and to come check us out if they are in the area. It's really all about networking only on a bigger stage than the co-op produce section. Explain how the City’s funding will support the project. If the project can still be done without City funding, show how the requested funds will improve the project: I have been building this business for the past year. It has been slow, but with the podcast element are suddenly super charge. Everything has been out of pocket, but my pockets are empty. Without funding I will find a way but it would be lovely to put my energy toward the
work vs the fund raising.
Explain how the project will either target Port Townsend/East Jefferson residents or, if the event is designed to bring in visitors from the area, how you will advertise to those
visitors:
I happily feature any Port Townsend or local artist that wants to share. We talk about their
connection to place, the galleries they are featured at and the classes they offer. I'm also
happy to do an extra shout out to PT and all it has to offer! I've lived here for 30 years and it
has made me the artist that I am. I am happy to give back in any way I can.
I offer free online creative play days and soon want to offer outdoor one here in town. These
have been incredibly inspiring and fun for all. With the outdoor ones I want to inspire people
to connect with our beautiful environment and find their inspiration there. It's my favorite way
to create and I look forward to sharing that. One project birthing at a time though, so I'm
focused on the podcast.
If this event has received Arts Commission funding in the past, please explain
any proposed changes to the event and any change in the requested funding
amount. NA
City of Port Townsend Arts Commission Application for Financial Support
Date of Application Thu, 09/16/2021 - 4:45pm Organization Name Lindsey Wayland
Primary Contact Lindsey Royal Wayland
Phone Number 8314190039
Email hello@lindseywayland.com
Project or Event Name Pick Up Poetry
Event Location Rented Spot at Ft. Worden
Date(s) of Event asap
Amount Requested 7,200
Admission Charge 0
Donations Accepted? Yes
Is there at least one free or "pay what you wish" performance? Yes
Total Budget? 14,400
Please attach the proposed budget for this event pick_up_poetry_budget_lindsey_wayland.pdf
Has the venue for the event(s) been assessed as ADA accessible? No
Describe how your project will benefit and consider the diverse population of the greater Port Townsend community: This project will benefit the youth of Jefferson County. Mental health is at an all time high crisis in the last few years, especially escalating with the pandemic. In high school, I had an English teacher who let adolescents come into her class during pep rallies. This was a saving grace for a group of kids who were overstimulated by the bigness of these sport- centered events. We wrote poetry. My husband Cody plays pick up soccer twice a week in the local community. I don't love sports, necessarily, but I do admire the camaraderie Cody has found within his pick-up soccer community and it reminds me of my high school English respite from the sports events! I want to offer weekly Pick Up Poetry for the youth who want a respite from sport events but need the camaraderie of a group working together.
Explain how the City’s funding will support the project. If the project can still be done without City funding, show how the requested funds will improve the project: The City's funding will support half of the project. I plan to write another proposal for the remaining $7,200. The City's funding will support the project to move forward as soon as funding is received. The funding will go toward rental of the space and the facilitation of the groups each week.
Explain how the project will either target Port Townsend/East Jefferson residents or, if the event is designed to bring in visitors from the area, how you will advertise to those visitors: The project will target all youth in the county. It will be offered free. I have a presence in the community and part of the facilitation will be writing to the local media outlets to let them know about this incredible project for teens in the community. I have 15 years experience in the mental health and healing arts fields working with adolescent population. Poetry Therapy is among my very favorite things to market and connect about.
If this event has received Arts Commission funding in the past, please explain any proposed changes to the event and any change in the requested funding amount. This is the inaugural grant proposal as well as the first time this event will be announced to the community. It is designed to become a weekly staple for adolescents moving through challenging times and has the potential to grow into a creative asset of Port Townsend's already rich poetic and creative community.
Pick Up Poetry Budget
$250 per week for facilitation
$50 per week for rental
_____________________________
$1,200 per month
$14,400 for Pick Up Poetry for a one year trial run
City of Port Townsend Arts Commission Application for Financial Support
Date of Application Sun, 09/19/2021 Organization Name Salish Sea Butoh Primary Contact Ivan Daniel Espinosa Phone Number 713-739-8840 Email salishseabutoh@gmail.com Project or Event Name Salish Sea Butoh Fall workshop and performance series Event Location Fort Worden state park, Quimper Grange, Chetzemoka Park
Date(s) of Event October 30, 31, November 1, November 7, November 26,27,28
Amount Requested $1900.00
Admission Charge 3 free outdoor public performances
Donations Accepted? Yes
Is there at least one free or "pay what you wish" performance? Yes
Total Budget? $3800.00
Please attach the proposed budget for this event salish_sea_butoh_fall_budget_workshops_performances_file.doc
Has the venue for the event(s) been assessed as ADA accessible? No
Describe how your project will benefit and consider the diverse population of the greater Port Townsend community: SALISH SEA BUTOH is a collective of Port Townsend-based dancers, performers and multimedia artists -- co-founded by Cosmo Rapaport and Iván-Daniel Espinosa -- to deepen the study and exploration of Japanese Butoh and Butoh performance in the Olympic Peninsula. Throughout the year, we host movement workshops and intensive dance trainings Led by exceptional Butoh teachers and veteran Butoh artists. We also produce outdoor events, multimedia performances and site-specific dances in parks throughout the Port Townsend area such as Fort Worden and Chetzemoka Park. OUR Fall 2021 PERFORMANCE SERIES/PROJECT will benefit the community at large by bringing diverse, multicultural artistic live programming to audiences in Port Townsend. Our Autumn project features performance collaborations with Mexican artist Diego Piñón of Butoh Ritual Mexicano, award-winning Japanese musician Tatsuya Nakatani, and Pacific Northwest Butoh pioneer and master teacher Dr. Joan Laage. These three artists are of exceptional quality and esteem in the world of performance art: Joan Laage is the founder of the Seattle International Butoh Festival and is responsible for bringing the art form of Butoh to the Puget Sound region after studying extensively in Tokyo with Butoh pioneer Yoko Ashikawa (the major disciple of Butoh founder Tatsumi Hijikata) and with world-renowned Butoh master Kazuo Ohno. Mexican dance artist Diego Piñón, originally born in the town of Tlalpujahua high in the mountains of Michoacán, also studied with the original co-founders of Butoh in Japan throughout the 80's and early 90's. Soon afterward, Diego Piñón began fusing aesthetic principles from Japanese Butoh with the shamanic dance rituals of his indigenous Mexican heritage and also started a school of contemporary ritual dance that bridges east and west, ancient and modern forms. We are also thrilled to be brining renowned musician and master percussionist Tatsuya Nakatani to Port Townsend. Originally from Osaka, Japan, Nakatani has been a prolific sound artist in the avant-garde music scenes for over three decades and is known for his transformative approaches to playing East Asian gongs with bows and mallets, incorporating shimmering sonic layers of vibration, silence and texture. The multicultural artistic programming that our production collective, SALISH SEA BUTOH, offers to Port Townsend helps to adequately reflect and celebrate cultural diversity in the broader population. Diversity is perspective and it's vitally important as a community to understand and appreciate the diverse, vibrant perspectives of our social, cultural, ecological, and artistic worlds. Our collaboration with these artists from Japan, Mexico and Seattle facilitates immersive multicultural and multidisciplinary COLLABORATION and artistic EXCHANGE which leads to better community- building and decision-making, while also introducing new ideas into the social imagination and increasing creativity and innovation within Port Townsend and the surrounding communities.
Additionally, all of our events are open to artists of any artistic medium/background who are curious about Butoh and also to people with little or no dance/performance experience. Our mission is to be in service of creating meaningful performance art that celebrates Port Townsend's unique natural landscapes, beaches and beautiful moss-covered forests. Our Autumn artistic programming features ecology-themed Butoh performances and site-specific
dances in nature with Live music at North Beach County Park, Fort Worden State Park and Chetzemoka City Park. ABOUT BUTOH -- A GLOBAL ART FORM: Butoh, which incorporates elements of Surrealism, Dada, French Existentialism, German Expressionism, Japanese theatre and eastern spiritual thought, was first developed in the late 1950's through experimental collaborations between its founders Tatsumi Hijikata and Kazuo Ohno. Their work established Butoh as disciplined and rigorous, yet spontaneous and idiosyncratic, intellectual and experimental, yet grounded in the human body. Despite the recent origination of this dance form, it has quickly spread throughout Europe, the United States, Latin America, Asia and Australia, resonating with artists of many genres and appealing to worldwide audiences while demonstrating that it speaks to something primordial within us.
Explain how the City’s funding will support the project. If the project can still be done without City funding, show how the requested funds will improve the project: Salish Sea Butoh’s programing for the 2021 fall season is dependent on acquiring the funds to support the direct costs needed to actualize our proposed PUBLIC PERFORMANCES and WORKSHOP EVENTS. With the ingenuity and hard work from our collective we have been able to formulate 3 outdoor performances that would be free of charge to the Port Townsend community. Additionally, our workshops in both October and November would offer 32 hours of artistic training to the Port Townsend community with two renowned artists from the world of Butoh dance. The funding we are asking for is specifically related to the performances and workshop expenses. As you will see in the attached budget, we are requesting financial assistance to pay for teachers, venue costs, and renting sound equipment for the public performances. Without this specific public arts funding, Salish Sea Butoh would have to rely on ticket sales to cover the costs of producing these events. Moreover, these projects would not be accessible to the public without the funding we are seeking. Both Joan Laage and Diego Piñón have been so kind to accept our invitations to teach in Port Townsend this fall and will teach three 6 hour long classes during each of their stays. Unfortunately, without the financial support Salish Sea Butoh is requesting, we would have to cut our workshop hours with Joan and Diego in half (as we simply do not have the money for 32 hours of workshop training and venue rentals). This funding from the Port Townsend Arts Council would cover theses costs to ensure that our workshops are accessible for visiting dancers and enable local artists in town to have access to this inclusive and expressive dance form. Producing and curating performances in the context of our ever-changing pandemic landscape, we know that hosting events that are outdoors is the only way to keep audiences and performers safe. In moving Salish Sea Butoh’s performances outside, our collective is asking for the Arts Council’s financial support to rent battery powered sound/music equipment that we would normally have access to in an indoor venue or theater. Lastly, it is important to emphasize that the venues and resources that we would be renting with the council’s grant would be directed to local spaces and businesses that could greatly benefit with our proposed usage and put funds back into the local Port Townsend economy.
Below I have attached a list of all of Salish Sea Butoh’s October and November’s programing, and have highlighted the specific expenses that the Port Townsend Art Council’s grants would go towards. Salish Sea Butoh Fall 2021 Programing October 30, 31 & November 1 Joan Lagge Workshop and Day of the Dead PUBLIC PERFORMANCE @ Fort Worden State Park
Workshops at the Quimper Grange 9AM-3PM Saturday, Sunday, and Monday Grant funding would support: 18 hours of Training 18 hours of Venue Rental (Quimper Grange)
Day of the Dead Performance Choreographed by Joan Lagge, Monday November 1st 4pm - 5:30pm, @ Fort Worden State Park (outdoor and free to the public) Grant funding would support: Rental of sound equipment for live musical orchestration (battery powered microphone +
AMP)
Salish Sea Butoh Programing November 7th, 2021 Tatsuya Nakatani’s 1st performance Thursday 3pm-4:30pm @ Fort Worden State park (outdoor and free to the public) Nakatani’s 2nd performance Thursday 7:30pm-8:45pm @the uptown pub (21+ venue suggested donation) Grant funding would support: Payment for Nakatani’s PUBLIC PERFORMANCE at Fort Worden State Park
Salish Sea Butoh Programing for November 26th, 27th, 28th Diego Piñón Workshop and live out-door public performance @ Chetzemoka Park city park Workshops at the Quimper Grange 9am-3pm Friday, Saturday, and Sunday Grant funding would support: 18 hours of training (Diego Piñón ) 18 hours and venue rental (Chimacum Grange) Diego Piñón’s Outdoor PUBLIC PERFORMANCE with live music Sunday November 28th 3pm- 4:30pm @ Chetzemoka city park (outdoor and free to the public) Grant funding would support: 2 hour rental of sound equipment.
Explain how the project will either target Port Townsend/East Jefferson residents or, if the event is designed to bring in visitors from the area, how you will advertise to those visitors: Salish Sea Butoh’s proposed Fall season of workshops and outdoor public performances, comes on the heals of a very successful summer season where we presented three internationally renowned Butoh teachers, and hosted dancers from Port Townsend and across the country. Additionally we Presented four public performances, two of which were free to the public and two of which were donation based. We are very proud of our reputation for producing artistically accessible events in the Port Townsend and Jefferson
County communities. Our publicity in local press, social media, and our website (www.salishseabutoh.com ) have allowed us to create long lasting artistic connections, and has been a way for local our local community to find out about our work and participate (either as audience or collaborators). For our upcoming season we intend to hit the ground running, putting press out through the Port Townsend leader, radio advertisements though KPTZ’s monthly calendar, and spreading the work through daily and weekly Facebook and website updates. We also work closely with Port Townsend resident Sandee Johnson and Patrick Ward who are both local talented visual artists, who design our promotional material (i.e posters, flyers, and social media ads). Additionally we have a strong community nationally and usually about half of the dancers attending our workshops are from out of town. This being the case we make a huge effort to advertise local businesses and lodging to folks who come from out of town.
If this event has received Arts Commission funding in the past, please explain any proposed changes to the event and any change in the requested funding amount. Salish Sea Butoh and Ivan Espinosa have not received funding from the Arts commission in the past.
EXPENSES Per day costs Total cost
for each
item
Total we
would
apply grant
funds to-
per item
Total Cost for
Salish Sea Butoh’s
Fall Public art and
Workshops
Total Financial
support Salish Sea
Butoh is seeking Port
Townsend Arts
Council
Joan Laage’s
Teaching
Payment (18
instruction
hours)
$400.00 Per
workshop day
x 3 days
$1200.00 $600.00
Quimper
Grange Rental
(18) hours
150$ daily
rental cost x 3
days
$450.00 $225.00
Outdoor
Sound System
150$ cost of
sound
equipment x 2
days of
renting
$300.00 $150.00
Tatsuya
Nakatani
$200 payment
for 1.5 hour
long public
performance
$200.00 $100.00
Diego Piñón’s
Teaching
payment (18
instruction
hours)
$400.00 per
workshop day
x 3 days
$1200.00 $600.00
Quimper
Grange (18
hours)
$150 daily
rental cost x
3days
$450.00 $225.00 $3800.00 $1900.00
“local” artists have been forced to move farther out to Chimacum, Port Hadlock /
Irondale, and even Port Ludlow due to housing realities, and that these community members regularly attend and create arts events in Port Townsend, using the word “community” accurately describes whom we serve. We await your word. Happy to discuss with you at our next regular meeting or
beforehand. FYI, once we receive forms the new forms from Heidi, we will hold a special meeting on August 18 at 3pm at which we’ll strive to amend our current workplan to include the Poet Laureate proposal, and also work to put together a 2021 workplan and budget.
Thank you so much for your consideration, Jason Victor Serinus Chair, Port Townsend Arts Commission
September 10, 2021
Port Townsend Arts Commissioners,
I am pleased to report that Key City Public Theatre (KCPT) has completed its Summer Theater Intensives
project for which we received a City of Port Townsend Arts Commission (PTAC) grant award. This letter
serves as our final report and is accompanied by an invoice for the full grant award amount of $500.00.
KCPT delivered five summer intensives between mid-July through late August, 2021. A total of 92 students
from throughout Jefferson County participated (68% from Port Townsend). KCPT also employed six teaching
artists during this project, at a time when performing artists have been severely under-employed due to the
pandemic. 60% of all students received scholarships to offset registration fees and all classes welcomed drop-
in students, with no student turned away for lack of funds or class size limitations. Teaching staff was expanded
to accommodate demand so that all students who wished to join the classes could participate.
KCPT successfully leveraged this PTAC grant to help secure a pending $15,000 grant from Jefferson
Community Foundation. Together with Port Townsend Kiwanis, The Morgan Fund of Seattle, and a generous
private sponsorship, KCPT was able to launch its new mobile outdoor unit and is now better equipped to serve
youth throughout the Olympic Peninsula. The project built the theater’s capacity to deliver more robust
programs throughout the school year, as well as each summer. Specifically, PTAC grant dollars helped to
market these summer programs throughout Jefferson County as well as contributed to facility rental costs
associated with running an off-site outdoor program in public spaces. Due to successful promotion of these
activities, demand dictated adding a fifth week-long performance intensive, not previously included in the
scope of this project. In this late-August workshop, students ages 12 - 16 were challenged to put newly learned
skills to the test in a 30-minute fully staged family-friendly play performed to a socially distanced and masked
audience of 85 attendees at Chetzemoka Park. It should be noted that this addition to KCPT’s summer
education programs engaged an additional 39 children (mostly between the ages of 1 – 8 years old) as audience
members, and is now slated to be part of KCPT’s annual programming.
Organizations and entities that contributed to the success of KCPT’s project included, City of Port Townsend
Parks and Rec Department, Worthington Park, Quilcene Historical Society, Quilcene School District, and Port
Townsend Mainstreet Program. These program partners assisted with donated or discounted use of facilities
for holding outdoor classes, and promotions to help us reach under-served and at-risk youth in our community.
Together with our partners, Key City Public Theatre’s summer programs reached further into our county
delivering meaningful and accessible in-person performing arts activities to some of our youngest residents.
Educational components mixed with fun and highly physical classes gave our youth an opportunity to learn
how to collaborate, build self-confidence, and increase community-minded awareness and empathy, setting
them on a path towards life-long participation in the arts. As has been our experience with past grant-awarded
projects, PTAC’s funding was a critical factor in our ability to deliver this program and meet project goals.
With gratitude,
Denise Winter, KCPT Executive Artistic Director
PORT TOWNSEND POET LAUREATE PROPOSAL
Submitted by the Port Townsend Arts Commission
What it means
Establishing the position of Port Townsend Poet Laureate involves far more than simply bringing
poetry to a few city events. By taking this step, we affirm that our lives can be made richer
through poetry. We also demonstrate that the citizens of our arts-oriented community value and
support how artists see the world. We commit to honoring poets’ varied perspectives and vision
by making them a vital element of our civic discourse. Last but hardly least, by establishing a
Port Townsend Poet Laureate, we affirm the city’s status as a long-standing hub of artistic
expression and creativity as well as an official Washington State Creative Arts District.
What they’d do
We propose that Port Townsend’s Poet Laureate serve for one year and give four readings of
original poems per year at events pre-determined by the City Council in consultation with the
Arts Commission. After each reading, the city will send the poems out with its newsletter.
The Poet Laureate would also work with City Council and the Arts Commission to develop a
program that would help raise the community’s awareness of the importance of poetry to the
health and vitality of our community. The program could be somewhat flexible and change each
year to reflect the strength and gifts of individual poets and the needs of an ever-evolving
community. The Port Townsend Poet Laureate would receive an honorarium of $1000/year in
return for their service.
Port Townsend Poet Laureate candidates must live in Port Townsend or East Jefferson County at
the time they apply. Applicants must demonstrate their dedication to their craft through proof of
publication and/or other metrics that they deem appropriate. They must also affirm their
willingness to actively help raise public awareness of the importance of poetry to the vitality of
our diverse community.
The selection process
The Poet Laureate Selection Panel would consist of three to five informed individuals from
literary arts organizations located both within and beyond Jefferson County. By widening the
geographic net of the Selection Panel, we will benefit from the objectivity and advice of artists
with a vast breadth of experience in poetry. All panel members would be given a sense of the
nature of our community and provided with information that will help inform their choice. They
would also be welcome to provide feedback on the application process itself and how the Arts
Commission and City might work together to refine it in subsequent years. Panelists would
receive a $300 honorarium in return for their service.
A Poet Laureate Subcommittee of the Port Townsend Arts Commission, which would include a
representative from the City Council, would devise the application itself and propose how the
call would be disseminated to the public. This body would also choose members of the Selection
Panel and create a way to convene remotely. The Poet Laureate Subcommittee would administer
the Poet Laureate program, which would be funded from the Arts Commission budget. The Arts
Commission’s budget would be increased by $2500-$3000 to pay the Poet Laureate and
Selection Panel honoraria.
Port Townsend Arts Commission
Budget Proposal: 2022
There is no need to educate veteran City Council members about the importance of the Arts
Commission. It is our duty to help promote and encourage public programs to further the
development and public awareness of and interest in the arts. We take this responsibility
seriously and work proactively to forward our city’s identity as a center of artistic creation.
In the past year, we’ve proposed establishing the position of Port Townsend Poet Laureate.
We’ve also altered our grant process to make it easier for individual artists and smaller groups to
access support via microgrants. Finally, we’ve made explicit our commitment to serve all
members of our community. Everything we do is now guided by the principles of inclusivity,
diversity, equality, and access, aka IDEA. These principles are central to building a vital
community in which all are residents and visitors are honored, respected, and nourished by
artistic endeavors that enhance individual and collective physical, economic, mental, emotional,
and spiritual well-being,
Port Townsend is now an official Arts District of the State of Washington. Major local and
regional entities including Northwind Arts, the craft-based Maritime Center. and the Northwest
School of Wooden Boatbuilding have variously consolidated and expanded. There is every
reason to expect a major artistic renaissance once the pandemic has passed. The Arts
Commission must be in a solid position to nourish and support this expanse.
The time has come for Port Townsend to own its identity as a center of artistic activity by
granting the Arts Commission sufficient funds to nourish and support the arts. The grant money
that we’ve awarded so far this year is a poor indicator of how much we will need once the
COVID-19 crisis abates. Rather than ending up with insufficient funds to fund all worthy
requests, as has been the case for a number of years, we propose that the City carry over our
unused funds from 2021 and add to them enough money to raise our budget to $100,000.
Attached you will find two letters from Arts Commission members who make a compelling case
for this budget increase. We hope you will take their words to heart.
Thank you so much.
Respectfully submitted:
Jason Victor Serinus
Chair, Port Townsend Arts Commission.
In September 1's meeting of the Port Townsend Arts Commission, we agreed to request a budget
of $100,000. I feel at least partly responsible for that decision. Dan Groussman shared that he has
studied other art-centered communities of a similar size and learned that they spend significantly
more than $20,000 of their city budgets in support of the arts. I couldn't help but confirm that
when I served on the Cultural Funding Advisory Committee on Bainbridge Island, an
organization whose function is quite similar to the PTAC, we were allocating funds totaling
around $300,000 to around 20 organizations to cover a two-year period . Granted, Bainbridge is
a larger and wealthier community than Port Townsend. But as someone who chose to move here
FROM Bainbridge BECAUSE of the art community here, I would claim that the arts play a
much larger role here, both in community life and as a tourist attraction. And despite the fact that
we're a smaller community, PTAC gives out a similar number of grants. But those grants are for
significantly smaller amounts -- and I believe it's time for that to change.
Art has the capacity to transform lives and to create knowledge, understanding and compassion
in our world. As the city of Port Townsend continues to grow, we have a unique opportunity to
grow our reputation as a vibrant, creative, and inclusive community. But to accomplish that goal
we need to become more intentional about creating opportunities for both community members
and tourists to experience the wisdom, beauty, and transformative power of the arts. I believe we
can do that most effectively by providing more generous support to the arts organizations and
artists who contribute so much of their own talent and energy to keeping Port Townsend a
dynamic, welcoming, and inspiring community. To spend this money is not an expense: it's an
investment in our future.
Thank you for listening,
Diane Walker
Member, Port Townsend Arts Commission
of the letters now that I reflect back on them over the years is unfortunate: a meek,
sugarcoating tone as though asking the city for a big favor. It shouldn’t be that way.
• Sugarcoating is not advising:
An emphasis on our successes does not amount to ‘good advice’ for Council, nor is
sugarcoating part of PTAC’s job description. Instead, I believe we should forego the fluff
and be more forthright in relaying our budget requests. We should always ask for what
we need, not more, not less. PTAC’s annual budget requests to the City Manager
should be accompanied by a dollar amount that is derived from calculation and
supported by statistics. Budget discussions and decisions should, at the very least, start
with this baseline calculation: what it would take to adequately fund our local arts at a
thriving level, not merely at a surviving level.
If I were a City Manager or Councilperson in this town and tasked with being aware of
such things, I’d want to see that specific information from my advisory board so I could
best perform my job. I’d want to be informed as to what the risk of underfunding is and
how a lack of investment in our arts can negatively impact our community and overtax
our artist-citizens and local arts organizations, especially during lean times when they
require additional support. If I were a City Manager or Councilperson, I may even ask
the Arts Commission directly, “What amount do you need to competently fulfill your
mission?” - a simple question I’ve regrettably not heard asked of us in ten years.
Additionally, we should be careful not to misadvise Council in our submitted budget
requests by focusing more on our accomplishments in lieu our shortcomings. For if we
don’t squeak, we won’t get the grease. It seems unsurprising then that our City
Managers may have justified their annual proposals to Council that we maintain our
funding at a similar amount as the year before since, after all, why spend more money
on something that isn’t broken?
Arts thriving versus arts surviving:
We should strive to be the “arts community” that we boast to be on our sign at the
entrance of town. To help our city government better understand what’s needed, PTAC
should be referencing examples of other cities known for their thriving arts programs as
models that we want to emulate. PTAC should let city government know where we rank
compared these other ‘arts towns’ in the arena of art funds-allocation so that those
individuals tasked with making budget decisions in our city can do so while furnished
with this contextual information.
A quick referencing of 2019 budget allocations for the arts in other towns’ reveals that
we fall significantly short compared to what those towns allocate for their arts
communities: Vail, CO invests $20.50 per person/per year, Park City, UT ≈$18.33/p/y,
Friday Harbor ≈$19.20 p/y, Seattle ≈$20.15 p/y. Port Townsend’s population has
hovered around 10,000 and our gross revenues and overall budget has increased from
about $6.6 million in 2011 to about $9.9 million today, an over 150% increase. Yet
sadly, our city can’t seem to get beyond the decade-long, unchanged amount it allocates
per person per year in support of our local arts: just $2.
• Fund it and they will come:
Arts funding for any city requires a leap of faith and a belief that adequate funding will
pay off later. Immediate measurable benefits are sometimes difficult to see. The payoff
from the investment is not as tangible as a filled pothole in a road, or a newly acquired
patrol car to replace one that’s worn out. Luckily, we don’t need to guess as to what
those benefits may be because countless studies exist nationwide that prove that dollars
invested in a community’s arts results in significant stimulating benefits both culturally
and economically for towns like ours. Dividends come in the form an increased quality-
of-life for our citizenry of course (arguably the greatest benefit from local arts
programming) but increased arts funding also pays off by growing our town’s tourism
industry. The added benefits of arts tourism - tax collection, sales in shops and visits to
restaurants and stays in hotels means that every dollar invested in our local arts
economy has the potential to bounce around within the greater community to the benefit
of multiple individuals, organizations and establishments.
When city governments recognize the benefits of investing in local arts as an economic
driver, they get closer to understanding the need to adequately fund their local artists
and arts entities. In support of this investment, PTAC has identified and reported to The
City that at least a third of our funding requests are programs that are considered
‘economic drivers’ - programs that promote our town outside of our zip code and bring in
visitors (and their wallets). In PTAC’s 2019 budget, the Lodging Tax Advisory Board
(LTAC) partially recognized this opportunity by allocating an additional $10k to PTAC to
augment our usual $20k budget. The amount was used solely for funding ‘economic
driver’ programs. This increase from our usual amount, although still shy of what we
ultimately needed, acknowledged for the first time in ten years that increasing PTAC’s
budget with the intention of enticing visitors to town is money well-invested, not spent.
Unfortunately, the increase in our budget from this fund was short-lived as LTAC did not
allocate any money for PTAC the following year. And while the one-time boost was
helpful, the absence of it in subsequent years resulted in a continuation of several arts
programs not receiving the funding they needed.
In addition to national studies, we don’t need to look that far for more indicators that
we’re underfunding our local arts; we’ve got a recent study of our own to reference. In
2014 our city, along with Jefferson County Community Foundation, PT Main Street,
Centrum and others participated in a funded study to assess the Creative Vitality Index
of our community. The complete report, submitted to LTAC and City Council in July of
2014, focuses on objective information collected from data streams that measure the
strength of our arts economy. I participated in the workshops and was at the
presentations and discussions, but I’m the only PTAC member still on the Arts
Commission that attended and I’m fearful that we aren’t utilizing the insights gleaned
from that study to our best advantage today. I certainly hope this report is being utilized
by our City Manager and City Council to better comprehend and inform our path forward.
One other resource available that may assist our city government tin understanding what
we’re missing out on by underfunding our arts is a 2019 statement submitted to Council
by Owen Rowe at a city council business meeting. Within the letter, read aloud by him
in council chambers, Mr. Rowe wrote from the perspective of both Arts Commission
Chair and then part way through, as a Port Townsend citizen. Although Owen received
some flack from PTAC for the rogue nature in which he presented our budget request
letter to Council, I admire that he capitalized on his pulpit-time to sound the alarm that
we’re severely off track when it comes to arts funding. In the letter, Mr. Rowe speaks of
our need to create a position for a Port Townsend Director of Arts and Culture. He
presents deficiencies in our city government’s arts awareness, most notable in the
absence of the words “art” and “culture” anywhere in our strategic plan. Additionally, Mr.
Rowe mentions that PTAC does not have a staff liaison (unlike other advisory boards)
that advocates on PTAC’s behalf when budget time comes around, which disadvantages
PTAC when competing for allocations that better-represented advisory boards are also
vying for. Finally, Mr. Rowe states that $100k should be budgeted to “arts organizations
in support of events and performances for the people of Port Townsend and surrounding
communities, as advised by the Arts Commission.” And while his letter may not have
been well received by everyone, those charged with making such decisions should, at
the very least, be aware of its message.
• Walking the talk as an “Arts Community” town:
Two dollars per person per year budgeted for local arts programming in Port Townsend
is a pittance. I’m embarrassed by the message this amount sends to the citizens of our
little town and apologize for not speaking up more about it in the past. It’s about time our
city government steps up to acknowledge that we’ve been overburdening our local
artists and arts entities for far too long by underfunding them, and missing significant
opportunities to promote our local arts economy by not sufficiently investing in it.
It’s time to put our money where our mouth is – if we’re going to bill ourselves as an “arts
community,” we need to at least keep up with the Joneses (Friday Harbor, Seattle,
others) and look toward a $20/person ratio as a reasonable and sufficient amount to
fund for local arts. Port Townsend’s 10,000 or so population, as well as the surrounding
East Jefferson County population, deserves nothing less for the arts than $20 per
person, budgeted proportionally to our population year after year. If our town intends to
walk its talk as a premier Western Washington “arts community,” we should immediately
address the grossly underfunded state of our local arts and budget PTAC $100k for
2022 and beyond.
Let’s do this,
Dan Groussman
the City of Port Townsend has finally begun to support the arts in the manner they
deserve could, in short order, transform the arts profile of Port Townsend and East Jefferson County. Our official Washington State Arts District could actually become the Arts Mecca we dream about.
I look forward to working with you further on this budget request.
Thanks so much,
Jason Victor Serinus
Chair, Port Townsend Arts Commission
1
Amber Long
From:Jason Victor Serinus
Sent:Friday, October 1, 2021 10:39 AM
To:Suzanne Horne
Cc:Amber Long; Heidi Greenwood
Subject:Re: Greetings from Sequim Art Commission
Hi Suzanne,
Jason Victor Serinus here. Thank you so much for writing.
I’m in the middle of a Synology advanced support session so shall be brief. While I don’t have time to start investigating
what the Sequim City Arts Advisory Council does, let alone what powers it has, the Port Townsend Arts Commission
(PTAC) is an all‐volunteer body with very specific functions set up by the City Council. We are the only City Commission
with a budget, and that budget is earmarked specifically for grants to applicable arts projects. Our job is not to work with
all of PT’s existing arts organizations to set up an event schedule, coordinate events, and handle publicity; doing so
would be a major project that would require a lot of energy and agreement from every arts organization great and small.
I cannot envision our small group of frequently changing volunteers taking this on.
In addition, everything we do and take on must be discussed in a public meeting and be part of the public record. So
even if I thought this was super project that the Arts Commission had the ability to pursue, the only thing I could do is
what I’m about to do: Ask our wonderful staff coordinator, Amber Long, to include this exchange in our meeting packet,
and then mention it in my Chair’s Report at the start of our October 6 meeting.
I note that our meeting packet has already been sent to commission members. Hence, Amber will probably have to
generate a new packet with this correspondence included at the end.
If you have the time, you may wish to tune into our meeting. Amber can send you information, or you can find it online
at our website.
I welcome your thoughts, with the understanding that all correspondence must become part of the public record per:
PT’s open meeting / sunshine ordinance.
Thanks so much,
jason
On Oct 1, 2021, at 10:02 AM, Amber Long <ALong@cityofpt.us> wrote:
From: Suzanne Horne <shorne@sequimwa.gov>
Sent: Friday, October 1, 2021 9:42 AM
To: artscomm@cityofpt.us
Subject: Greetings from Sequim Art Commission
2
CAUTION: External Email
October 1, 2021
Jason V. Serinus – Arts Commission City of Port Townsend
Bob Stokes – Port Angeles Arts Commission
Greetings Jason and Bob. I am Suzanne Horne, the chair of the Sequim City Arts Advisory Council. Each
of us have similar mission/vision statements and it occurred to me that we might benefit from knowing
each other.
In Sequim we run an on‐line monthly meeting with any arts organization that wishes to join. We inform
each other when we will have a show or a concert or whatever. We adjust our timing of events to not
interfere with each other or, to supplement each other’s activity. We also push each other’s events over
our social media.
I don’t know if either of you would be interested in joining together to accomplish similar goals, but if
you would I can talk to the Sequim IT to set it up. We are scheduled tight about three months ahead so
we might want to just meet every three months. I’m open for any suggestions.
Thank you,
Suzanne Horne
—
Jason Victor Serinus http://www.jasonserinus.com
(He/his and Jason or Jason Victor rather than Mr. or Sir)
•Music and audiophile critic: Stereophile, Seattle Times, San Francisco Classical Voice, Classical Voice North
America, Seattle Symphony, Port Townsend Leader, Bay Area Reporter, American Record Guide, AudioStream, Stanford
Live, Opera Now, Gay City News, Copper, Opera News, Carnegie Hall...
•Whistler Extraordinaire: The Voice of Woodstock in “She’s a Good Skate, Charlie Brown” • "The Pavarotti of Pucker"
•Member, Port Townsend Arts Commission
"Neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim. Silence encourages the tormentor, never the tormented." — Elie
Wiesel
"This is a time to remember all of us who are LGBTQ. It’s a time to stand out and be proud, to parade who we are, to
celebrate and to let them know we will not be silenced, we will not be stopped, we will not go back into the closet.
Together, we will love.” — JVS at our Orlando Massacre Support Rally in Port Townsend, WA