Port Moody to fund new Arts and Business Council to strengthen “City of the Arts” brand

Port Moody’s task force, intended to strengthen its branding as the ‘City of the Arts,” has concluded the project needs significant start-up cash and another task force.

Couns. Samantha Agtarap and Kyla Knowles spearheaded the Mayor’s Arts and Business Coalition Task Force over the last six months and presented nine recommendations and seven “quick wins” to council on Oct. 10.

The most significant proposal is a second task force to develop a new non-profit organization, the Arts and Business Council (ABC), with a price tag estimated at $150,000 over the next two budget cycles.

“In my opinion, if you want to be the City of the Arts, you need to put your money where your mouth is,” said Mayor Meghan Lahti.

The task force was created to help grow Port Moody’s brand and create synergies between its art and business communities.

Lahti announced the creation of the working group at the end of March, 2023, shortly after a delegation which argued there is a disconnect between the city’s branding and its relationship to local artists and artisans.

The task force has convened six times since its first meeting in April, and produced and organized 40 ideas under various themes.

Agtarap said the group looked at examples from around the world, and conducted an analysis of Port Moody’s various strengths, weaknesses opportunities and threats.

“We identified gaps,” she said, adding the existing organizations in the community are siloed in either arts or business activities. “We see this as a creative and innovative new model that incorporates the interests of each group.”

Some of the major recommendations include creating an inventory of underutilized public and private spaces that could be repurposed for artistic uses, development of a street art program, and exploring creating new events and festivals.

While some of the recommendations could be completed by staff, many of the others will require the establishment of the ABC, which needs a full time executive director, according to the report.

Nine recommendations approved:

Seven “quick wins” approved:

“The bulk of the funding that we’re asking for tonight is for the salary of the future executive director, because we believe that you get what you pay for,” Agtarap said, adding it can’t be a volunteer position if they want to make progress.

The first steps in establishing an ABC would be creating its mandate, and forming partnerships with other local non-profits, businesses and arts-based groups.

Knowles said the creation of the ABC has cause “a bit of anxiety” with other arts groups in the city, but assured council they would be seeking stakeholder input and expertise regarding its creation.

“We recognize that there’s a very large concern about competition for grants and funding,” she said. “Those conversations did take place.”

Council approved the task force’s recommendations, though some had concerns over earmarking the funding without further public consultations.

Couns. Diana Dilworth and Haven Lurbieck, while both generally supportive of moving the recommendations forward, said they were uncomfortable allocating the funds based on the single task force report.

While public input would be received through budgetary discussions next year, Dilworth said that process would not be transparent enough.

She said she is concerned there’s a disconnect between the city committees and the broader community, and economic development, tourism, and arts and culture committees have yet to weigh in on the recommendations.

“This is going to be based on ongoing taxation potentially of our residents, and I really think if we want this to be successful, we need buy-in from (our committees), our residents and other art stakeholders,” Dilworth said.

Dilworth said with annual funding, reinstatement of programs and adding events, along with annual grants, the budget would closer to $200,000.

Coun. Callan Morrison suggested that money could be pulled from city reserves to relieve the pressure on taxpayers.

Although Lahti agreed consulting with other committees needs to occur to recognize cross-purposes, she noted passing the recommendations does not guarantee funding in the next budget cycle.

Paul Rockwood, general manager of finance and technology, said staff feel establishing a base level of funding is important, but potential hires would not be made until mid 2024.

“The timeline is not as quick as you might imagine,” Rockwood said.

Dilworth successfully added an amendment to ensure broader consultation takes place with all relevant civic committees, and local art organizations, businesses and the community

Approving funding was separated from the other recommendations, but it passed 5-2 with Dilworth and Lurbiecki opposed.