How many halls to (sic) we need?: A brutally misinformed opionion piece

Arthur Williams wrote an opinion piece riddled with errors and one that shows his lack of understanding of the subject.

Read the full article here

This was Bill Russell's response sent in the form of a Letter to the Editor:

Arthur Williams opinion column in your Feb 23 edition entitled "How Many Halls Do We Need?" is a bewilderingly short sighted, shallow, tired and ridiculous point of view.

How Many News Papers Do We Need, Mr. Williams? After your misinformed forray into this topic I should think one less would be my answer. Opinions are easy to find. Informed ones are apparently a little more difficult, but I would have surely appreciated a more diligent attempt on your part.

If you want to be taken seriously then at least do your homework? How is a performing Arts Centre different from what we have now? You're the reporter, call someone, ask and get a decent answer. Spend a moment to educate yourself and your readers about this topic before you dribble on.

Printing silly, misinformed comments such as yours on a topic which is obviously beyond your depth is really quite a waste. You could have taken this opportunity to learn, grow and improve the quality of our daily lives. Which, by the way, is truly the fundamental reason we must build a performing arts centre.

Mr. Williams, it's not so much your opinion that I abhore. It's your ignorance..

Bill Russell

Why Culture Matters: a talk by cultural commentator Max Wyman

Those wanting to learn more about the positive economic and social impact of arts and culture will be interested in reading this speech, and perhaps getting a copy of his book. I have a copy, should anyone like to borrow it.

The following are (lengthy) exerpts from Max Wyman's luncheon speech from 2004:

We have known for a long time that the availability and variety of cultural activity is one highly significant factor in this complex livability equation. Businesses increasingly choose to locate in cities that not only satisfy their needs in terms of transportation, distribution, and access to materials, but also provide the cultural density that will attract that workforce.

But as we move toward a society in which imagination is supplanting physical production as the basis of work, a city or region's economic health becomes increasingly to depend on its ability to attract what's been called the creative class - innovators - scientists and engineers, poets and architects, doctors and computer programmers, editorial writers and choreographers (sometimes hard to tell apart in their fancy footwork) ... as much as 30 percent of the workforce.

What they have in common is the ability to add creative value to a society; creative value that contributes to a climate of innovation and economic growth. They also generate, as a group, certain requirements from the places they choose to call home - not just the traditional elements of livability but an openness to eccentricity or difference; a broad range of cultural diversity and acceptance; and an active participatory, multi-dimensional lifestyle with a youthful orientation.

Now, these elements of openness and diversity of lifestyle are particularly interesting as cities begin to realize that traditional infrastructure investments like retail malls and sports complexes and industrial zones are less important than investment in people oriented amenities: parks, performance spaces, galleries.

Not everyone benefits from the public swimming pool, but we all pay for it. Very few individuals, in proportion to the size of our population, can take advantage of Canada's network of national parks, yet an overwhelming proportion of Canadians support their funding. The plain fact is, funding culture is neither an imposition of taste nor an act of charity - it is an investment in the health of the community, in the same way that building roads and hospitals is an investment in the health of the community.

What's clear is that both government and the private sector have a vested interest in making sure culture thrives. If nothing else, it's an investment in social health.

The full presentation is found here.

Location seen as critical: Free Press

Temporary.

Read the full article here

Northern Sports Centre: The Model of Success?

Cliff Dezell, the board chair for Northern Sports Centre Limited, says it’s very satisfying to see the soon-to-be opened facility being held up as a template for other community drives, according to Opinion250 News.

With no obvious funding sources, but a definite desire in the city’s arts, cultural and academic communities, City Centre Ventures is hoping to spearhead a community-based effort to build an Arts Centre downtown. The first public forum went last week.

The bid for the sports centre began in much the same way, Dezell says. When UNBC couldn’t afford a sports facility, reps from the city, regional district, university, business and sporting communities formed an ad hoc steering committee to further the cause. He says it was fortuitous that the Vancouver-Whistler Olympics were coming, so the local group successfully lobbied the government for funding.

The former long-time councillor says the community has a proven track record of some weighty accomplishments because all the various stakeholders work well together - the city, regional district, community groups and the provincial government.

"And that unified approach, he says, looks good when lobbying for funding. "It’s perhaps the most important reason why Prince George and the region has done pretty well over the years - is that, we have generally, as a community and as a region, gone to senior government as a unit, not as competing interests."

Full article and comment thread here.

Video from meeting

Paul Alberts from BoredInPG.com has put together a pretty awesome video.

Click below to watch. (25:58)


Bob Martin had a great quote towards the end:

Now is the time we have to start talking it up, really talking it up, whatever your thoughts are, because we've got to go out and get money for it.

I hope you are all "talking it up!"

Better city planning needed to form a cultural district

Nice letter to the editor in today's Citizen, written by Jovanka Djordjevich. Some exerpts:

Organizers of the Feb. 15 downtown performing arts meeting, better termed cultural centre meeting, said that they were “surprised” at the turnout.

It reminded me of “southerners” who say Prince George has “about as much culture as a tub of Astro yogurt." Not true. We have a long list of talented artists, writers, musicians, singers, performers, a rich farming community and natural beauty that nourish our souls.

These are the elements of culture, but I realize that unlike communities such as Fort St. John, Vancouver, and Kelowna, we have not forged a forum in which to collectively celebrate these riches. Surprisingly, we feel cultureless. To put it bluntly, we as a community have failed ourselves and the Feb. 15 “surprise” is evidence that we are long overdue for change.

Food, art and a central gathering place make our homes places that we want to be and we take great time and expense to create them. Why is it then, that we cannot understand the need for public funds for the facilities needed to make the art, secure healthy food sources and foster the basics of community?

With the “surprising” interest in an a cultural centre, as well as strong support for a public market and provincial funding available for public gathering places, now is the time for us to refocus on the downtown core. It needs art, it needs a year-round food source, and it needs an inviting gathering space.

With good planning, strong leadership, a supportive community, and perhaps a faulty clasp on the public purse, we may even be proud to call it home.

Read the full letter here.

How will succession at IPG affect the drive for a Centre of the Arts?

For those who don't know, Gerry Offet is working on a year-to-year basis at Initiatives Prince George. Opinion250 News has a story here.

Given his expected timeline for the Centre of the Arts initiative (18 months at minimum), one might expect Offet won't be there to see the project to completion, and that it will be handed off to someone else, likely the new president of IPG.

I think this issue of succession planning is an important one for the upcoming Task Force to deal with immediately, and to quickly communicate its plans to the arts community at large.

Making the Case for Culture: a must-read

If ever there was a must-read resource for those wishing to help achieve a Centre for the Arts in Prince George, it is this.

Making the Case for Culture is an amazing web resource that is part of the larger site CreativeCity.ca.

The site has two great downloadable pdf reports, Culture as an Economic Engine and Personal and Social Development of Children and Youth, as well as four other on-line reports that will soon be in a downloadable format.

These are great in that they provide very powerful, concise arguements as to why a Centre of the Arts makes good business sense. And the links to additional resources are awesome.

The more people that know and can enthusiasticly articlulate this information to those who don't fully understand, the better.

Feedback Strong for Arts Centre: Opinion250

Opinion250 News has another follow-up story on the results of the public meeting on Thursday:

IPG President Gerry Offet says CCV received more than 100 registration forms from those at the meeting either offering suggestions or willing to join a ’Friends of the Arts Centre’ steering committee, or both.

He says the initial strong show of support has been very gratifying. "I think the other part of it that I was really grateful for is that, while people were keen about the project, they also wanted to make sure that it was developed in such a way that it was going to be successful as an arts centre, first, and as an urban revitalization project, second, and we got that message loud and clear."

Offet expects to hold another public meeting in about one month’s time. An early goal is to establish a 12-person task force that will lead the charge in everything from determining user groups’ needs to securing funding for the future facility.

Full article and comment thread here.

CCV sorting data, keeping moving

I had a brief meeting with Gerry Offet this afternoon. He told me they received some great feedback from the meeting in terms of what kind of people should be on the Task Force, and other comments.

While staff is busy with budget issues next week, they are in the process of sorting out all of the "Friends of the Performing Arts Centre" from the signup sheets, and consolidating a list of those who've identified themselves as willing to serve on the "Task Force." Mr. Offet says they will be working the lists in the next few weeks to quickly get things in place.

For those who were unable to attend Thursday night's meeting, signups and comments are still welcome. Kathy Lachman has forwared me the agenda, signup sheets and backgrounders and I've placed them in the "Initial Public Meeting Resources" section of the sidebar (or you can simply click the appropriate links above.)

For those wanting to sign up as a "Friend" or identify themselves as a candidate for the "Task Force," you have a few options: You can download the pdf and bring it in to Initiatives Prince George (in the Via Rail building on 1st Avenue) or fax it to 649-3200. Alternatively, you can send your information to Kathy Lachman via e-mail.

Also, CCV would like to know the following:

What are the skill sets you see as being important for membership on the Task Force?

Your ideas here are particularly valueable, and can be sent to Kathy Lachman using the contact info above.