The Culture Vote

Why the arts matter in the mayoral primary

by Peggy Amsterdam

On April 15, voters will have the opportunity to hear directly from the Democratic candidates for mayor about what they would do to build on the arts and culture legacies of the last two mayors, Ed Rendell and John Street, when they participate in a candidates forum jointly sponsored by the Greater Philadelphia Cultural Alliance and the Arts & Business Council of Greater Philadelphia.

The 1:30 p.m. "It's About the Arts!" forum at the Academy of Natural Sciences is being held in partnership with the Theatre Alliance of Greater Philadelphia and Dance/USA Philadelphia. We are hosting this event because it is clear that no matter which candidate wins, arts and culture play a major role in the strength and development of our city and support for the sector needs to be part of the public debate.

Last month, we, along with the William Penn Foundation, sponsored "Arts and Culture in the Metropolis: Strategies for Sustainability," a new study from the RAND Corporation. The study examines 10 cities similar to Philadelphia to examine how those cities support culture and what our city could be doing better. As the study shows, Philadelphia has a dynamic local arts sector with a proven ability to attract visitors and residents to the city. Additionally, there is evidence that cities that thrive are actively utilizing their cultural sectors in tackling broader civic issues, and those same cities support their arts and cultural sector accordingly to accomplish these goals.

The impact is huge. Not only does the cultural sector directly provide Philadelphia with 14,000 jobs and $562 million in direct spending, it is also the number one reason that Philadelphia is an "excellent" place to live according to a recent Keystone Poll, drawing tens of thousands of visitors to the city.

For example, 2005's exhibit of art by Salvador Dali generated a total economic impact of $54.9 million within the region, with a total direct economic impact of $30.7 million and a total indirect economic impact of $24.2 million. The exhibition generated bookings of nearly 20,700 hotel rooms by individuals coming specifically to see the exhibit and generated 52,000 visits to other cultural attractions in the region.

The impact of arts and culture is felt across the city. Neighborhoods with an active arts scene are nearly three times more likely to see their poverty rates decline and their populations increase than other neighborhoods.

The value of the arts and culture sector goes far beyond its economic impact, of course. At their best, the arts are shared experiences that bind our community every bit as much as a sports championship. As a city, we are stronger because of the cultural organizations in our neighborhoods. They are neighbors in every sense of the word — building housing, offering safe haven and celebrating community.

For all these reasons, the Cultural Alliance believes that if the region is to continue its upward trajectory, city and civic leaders must be convinced to actively embrace the cultural sector as they address the critical issues facing Greater Philadelphia.

We believe that government and civic leaders need to:

• Establish a cabinet-level cultural affairs position in Philadelphia's government

• Establish a sustainable, substantial source of funding for cultural organizations; and

• Understand the role that arts and culture play in addressing the city's broader issues, and capitalize on that accordingly.

The cultural sector also has a responsibility to:

• Continue collaborations that maximize the value of public investment in cultural work;

• Set goals for the sector with specific benchmarks to measure success; and

• Continue gathering evidence of arts and culture's impact on broader issues facing the city and region.

To find out more about the new RAND study, where the candidates stand on arts and culture issues or to sign up to attend the forum, please visit our Web site at www.philaculture.org.

Peggy Amsterdam is president of the Greater Philadelphia Cultural Alliance.