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In the News
The economy of art A Boston Globe Editorial
May 12, 2004
FROM TANGLEWOOD to the Boston Children's Theatre, culture in Massachusetts
is a collection of pearls. Missing is an infrastructure of sturdy
buildings, adequate funding, and supportive laws and policies.
A new Boston Foundation report outlines the need. In 2002, spending
by the state's nonprofit cultural organizations added more than
$1 billion to the economy. But this economic engine gets little
respect.
The report points to $1.1 billion worth of plans by 123 cultural
organizations to repair, expand, or build new facilities over the
next five years. The organizations run from the New England Aquarium
to the Community Music School of Springfield. The report also calls
for expanding cultural tourism and legislative advocacy as well
as more technical assistance for smaller organizations.
A key resource is money. It's old but significant news that in Massachusetts,
state and local governments don't invest enough in culture. Boston
is dwarfed by cities such as San Francisco, where a hotel tax helps
fund the arts. And the state's cultural funding arm, the Massachusetts
Cultural Council, lost 62 percent of its state funding in 2003.
Endowed with an ample heart, the cultural community also needs a
bigger brain -- strategies, advocacy, and partnerships that solve
problems and increase access for residents, tourists, and schoolchildren.
One model is the Greater Philadelphia Tourism Marketing Corporation,
a public-private partnership among the city of Philadelphia, the
state of Pennsylvania, and the Pew Charitable Trusts. In Massachusetts,
visits by tourists have dropped since 9/11, but visits are up in
Philadelphia. Marketing corporation staffers credit aggressive marketing,
including a hotel package, free parking, and partnerships that help
cultural organizations buy national ads they otherwise couldn't
afford.
It's easy to be dazzled into complacency by blockbuster events.
But cultural vitality also needs sound planning and action.
© Copyright 2004 Globe Newspaper Company.
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