A recently announced funding strategy for the arts may not do much to help St. Albert non-profits, but Alberta’s Stabilize Program is being praised for the benefits it will bring outside of the city.
The Alberta government announced a one-time $17-million funding program for the arts and sports sectors on Jan. 28. The program offers various venue-based organizations a one-time payment to help cope with the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The program is open to any non-profit organization that demonstrates a clear financial need and is dedicated to the performing arts. Paul Pearson, St. Albert director of strategic services, says the city supports the move despite the minimal effect it will have on St. Albert.
“Under the eligibility criteria, municipalities are not eligible, and there are few non-profits in our arts community that meet the funding criteria,” Pearson explained.
“This is, however, a great program coming from the Government of Alberta and will benefit many groups as we all work towards recovery efforts brought on by the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic.”
The news of funding was met with applause by many organizations, including Citadel Theatre in Edmonton.
“This funding will assist us in relaunching in a robust way when it is safe to do so and ensure that the ‘light at the end of the tunnel’ will include stages full of theatre and music and dance,” said Chantell Ghosh, the executive director at the Citadel Theatre.
The program is a two-pronged approach. Of the $17 million, $12 million is devoted to the Stabilize Program, which will give operational funding to qualifying performing arts, rodeo and some sports non-profits. The amount of money will range for each approved applicant but can cover as much as 25 per cent of the eligible expenses. There are limits, however, on what the money can be used for. Expenses related to player salaries for sports teams and mortgage payments will not be eligible for funding under this program.
Interested parties can also opt to go through the program’s donation matching stream. This second approach includes $5 million to match private donations ranging between $250,000 and $1 million. This will work on a first-come, first-served basis.
Any organization interested in applying to the program will have until Feb. 18 to submit an application. Upon entering, they will be put through a evaluation process which will determine whether or not they are eligible to receive the funding.
For more information on the application process and the eligibility criteria, visit alberta.ca/stabilize-program.
