City of Providence Announces Arts-Based Non-Profits Selected to Receive $2.5M in ARPA Funding
PROVIDENCE, RI – Mayor Jorge O. Elorza, Lizzie Araujo, Director of Providence’s Department of Art, Culture + Tourism (ACT) and Francis Parra, Executive Artistic Director of Teatro ECAS today joined community members to announce the selection of 18 arts and/or culture-based non-profit organizations to receive a total of $2,500,000 in grant funding through the Providence American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) for capital repairs and renovations to existing facilities, and the construction of new ones.
The 18 non-profits selected for grant funding through the ARPA Infrastructure Notice of Funding Availability (NOFA) are 134 Collaborative, Community MusicWorks, Dirt Palace Public Projects, DownCity Design, Education Center of Arts and Sciences (ECAS), Genesis Center, Higher Ground International, International House of Rhode Island Inc., New Urban Arts, Next Generation & Futures, Providence Performing Arts Center, Providence Preservation Society, Southside Community Land Trust, Southside Cultural Center of RI, The Players, The Steel Yard, Trinity Repertory Company and Wilbury Theatre Group.
“Providence continues to live up to its name as the Creative Capital by recognizing the importance of the arts, and today’s infrastructure investments will lay an important foundation that prioritizes the creative and cultural sector,” said Mayor Jorge O. Elorza. “These 18 organizations, among countless others, help make our City the innovative, brilliant, and beautiful place that it is. These funds will ensure our vibrant arts and culture community continues to receive the support it needs to thrive and flourish.”
Applicants were able to apply for up to $750,000 of demonstrated need to cover capital repairs and renovations to existing facilities and the construction of new ones. Additionally, funds were made available to nonprofit cultural organizations for cash match related costs related to Rhode Island State Council on the Arts (RISCA) awarded State Cultural Facilities Grants. To be eligible for funding, applicants were required to submit a budget narrative that described the negative impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, existing construction plans, cost estimates, and/or feasibility studies.
“We often talk about creating space for the arts to exist, and while creating space can mean many different things, today it literally means creating and maintaining arts infrastructure,” said Lizzie Araujo, the City of Providence’s Director of Art, Culture + Tourism. “By investing in our local art-based non-profits with funding for their facilities, we are supporting their continued success and the enrichment of our community as a whole”
Today’s announcement comes after the City announced the selection of twelve arts and culture-based non-profit organizations to receive a total of $500,000 in grant funding through the Providence American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) in early October.
“On behalf of our board of directors, actors and staff, I am so deeply grateful for this grant, which represents an unparalleled opportunity for our theater company to grow and flourish,” said Francis Parra, Executive Artistic Director of Teatro ECAS. “I thank Mayor Elorza and the City Council with all my heart. After 25 years of hard work, it is a great honor to be recognized in this way. We will finally have a real home for Latino theater for our many patrons and artists.”
The City of Providence’s Art, Culture + Tourism Department ensures the continued development of a vibrant and creative city by integrating arts and culture into community life while showcasing Providence as an international cultural destination. ACT commissions public art and produces public programming in all 25 of the City’s neighborhoods, facilitates education partnerships in schools and libraries, and produces multiple flagship festivals, an annual arts and humanities lecture, and other dynamic public programs while stewarding a small portfolio of grants.
For more information on ARPA funding in Providence, please visit the City’s website.