Fayetteville events’ funding reassessed

Commission’s director says process for tax-funded grants needs structure

FAYETTEVILLE — The Fayetteville Advertising and Promotion Commission heard suggestions Monday on how to distribute money to the city’s programs and events.

Executive Director Molly Rawn presented ideas on how to give the grant process more structure and better adhere to the commission’s goals to promote the city. The commission twice yearly doles out grants to organizations to help them put on events and programs.

The commission gave out more than $208,000 to applicants last year and more than $216,000 in 2015. The commission gets its money from half of the city’s 2 percent hotel, motel and restaurant tax. The other half of the tax’s revenue goes to the Parks and Recreation Department.

Rawn proposed focusing the commission’s investment on performance, visual and culinary arts, the city’s heritage, and sports and recreation. Applicants could pursue grants in innovation and capacity, and nominees could be named for a “big audacious idea award.”

The innovation grant would serve as the first level of the three categories to help jumpstart new ideas or push existing ideas into new markets. Rawn suggested that each recipient would receive no more than $5,000, and the entire pot for the innovation grant category would cap at $50,000 for the year, or $25,000 each for spring and fall.

“I consider myself to be fiscally conservative, so I don’t want it to sound like I am playing fast and loose with taxpayer dollars. I am not,” Rawn said. “But I do think we need to have a pool where we can reward people who are coming up with quick ideas — the movers and shakers. I think putting a cap on that so we’re not just, you know, giving away the store, is important.”

The second category, capacity grants, would go to nonprofits to help increase their capacity to produce ongoing programming. Rawn cited Artosphere, the Walton Arts Center’s nature and arts festival that obtained $14,000 last fall from the commission, as an example.

The “big audacious idea award” would go to nominees with a proven track record in Fayetteville who show extraordinary originality and dedication to creative pursuits.

The proposed changes are meant to mimic what a foundation might do regarding best practice for making strategic investments, not cut the amount of funds given or the number of recipients each year, Rawn said. The commission will still determine how much to give out in grants. Many of the proposed changes were born out of feedback from applicants who wanted more clarity on what the commission looks for, Rawn said.

Rawn told the commission she would provide more details on what she and her staff envision for the capacity grants and “big audacious idea award” during March’s commission meeting. She also mentioned the possibility of giving out grants quarterly instead of biannually, but she said such a measure wouldn’t be possible this year.

In September, Rawn proposed doing away with the presentations that applicants had to give in order to receive grant funding. Commissioners supported that measure — one of Rawn’s first actions after being hired as executive director in July.

The commission was receptive to Rawn’s newest ideas Monday.

“Everything’s always lumped together when we’re trying to make a decision, so I’m glad to see that something’s being done,” Commissioner Ching Mong said. “It needs maybe a little bit of fine-tuning, but I think the general layout of what you have going on is good.”

Commissioner Robert Rhoads said it’s important to maintain the core mission.

“If this does and it’s a better way to do it and it creates more excitement and it unleashes creativity amongst the community, then I think it sounds absolutely incredible,” he said.

Commissioner Matt Behrend liked the idea of compartmentalizing the process. Alderman Adella Gray, who serves on the commission, praised the structure to the approach.

Alderman Matthew Petty, who serves as chairman of the commission, said he was eager to hear more about the proposed plan next month.