The Montgomery County Council has introduced a special appropriation for additional arts and humanities emergency relief funding, according to a council press release.
Spearheaded by Councilmembers Craig Rice and Evan Glass, the additional funding appropriation of $334,500 brings the total amount of emergency assistance funding appropriated for the arts sector to $3,584,500:
“From the BlackRock Center for the Arts in Germantown to the Black Box Theater in Silver Spring and to all artists and venues in between, our once vibrant arts scene has been hit the hardest during this pandemic,” Councilmember Evan Glass said in the council press release. “To ensure that the arts and humanities sector will one day be able to raise their curtains, we need to continue providing support. I was proud to partner with Councilmember Rice in leading the $3.25 million supplemental in July and am again proud to provide this additional funding to help artists large and small.”
The council unanimously approved a special appropriation of $3,250,000 in July to support creative professionals and arts and humanities organizations affected financially by the pandemic:
“In July, we passed a resolution providing critical grant funding for our arts community in response to the devastating financial losses suffered as a result of this pandemic on this important economic sector of our county,” said Councilmember Craig Rice. “The increase in number of folks who applied for these grants underscores the tremendous need out there, and we have to ensure that equitable funding is available to help them with their most urgent financial needs.”
The Arts & Humanities Council of Montgomery County’s September 2020 survey of the arts and humanities sector revealed a larger negative impact from the COVID-19 pandemic than originally estimated, reporting $32.8 million in lost revenue and $9.3 million lost in philanthropic contributions.
Photo courtesy Visit Montgomery