City preps $1.5M in assistance for creative spaces facing displacement

The city is preparing to open the application for the latest iteration of the Creative Space Assistance Program, which provides up to $50,000 to organizations, artists or for-profit venues facing financial hardships that could lead to their displacement.

The $1.5 million allocated for this year’s program is the largest amount of city funding so far since its inception as a pilot effort in 2018, brought about by the number of venues and arts spaces struggling with rising rents and maintenance expenses. The grant application process opens Jan. 24 on the Music & Entertainment Division’s website, with sites located in the extraterritorial jurisdiction surrounding Austin eligible for the first time ever.

Applications close Feb. 28 and are expected to be evaluated for awards in the spring.

CSAP was up for discussion at last week’s Music Commission meeting, with commissioners asking city staff about the long-term plans for the program, which can be used for rental assistance, revenue-generating space improvements and as part of gap financing for the purchase of a creative space.

Erica Shamaly, manager of the Music & Entertainment Division, said the city has a standing $500,000 commitment for CSAP in each budget year going forward. The commission also has the option of requesting more money as part of its yearly budget priorities recommendation for City Council.

“We have a goal to make the program sustainable and to try to move away from the Band-Aid, so to speak, really focus on leasehold improvements to increase revenue rather than rental assistance that was the Band-Aid need two or three years ago,” she said. “We really want to see our creative businesses invest in ways to make more money so they are sustainable … and the fact that the guidelines are now allowing for spaces to be within the (ETJ) is a great opportunity to get the word out to venues that before were unable to apply.”

Commissioners including Patrice Pike expressed concern about the city’s plan for publicizing the program since it is only open for a month. That led to discussion about the city’s guidelines for the commission to create its own Facebook or other social media account that could be used to build a following and make announcements about future meetings and programs of interest to music stakeholders.

Rebecca Reynolds, president of the Austin chapter of the Music Venue Alliance, said the city’s ongoing adjustments to the program, including the expansion of eligibility to the ETJ, is needed as musicians, venues and arts organizations are forced to move away from the city center due to affordability concerns.

She said establishing CSAP ahead of the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020 allowed the program to be up and running and able to assist a handful of music venues that were in danger of closing when all live events closed due to concerns about spreading of the virus.

“Right as Covid was hitting in 2020 there were a couple of venues who were barely hanging on by a thread that were able to get approved for that funding before we knew anything about (the Paycheck Protection Program) or anything like that. It really did save the day for some of our venues, I can say that for sure.”

While city staffers hope more of the grants can go toward capital improvements to spaces to improve their ability to generate revenue, Reynolds said monthly rental rates and associated expenses continue to be the most severe financial issue for venues. “Your rental rate may stay the same based on your contract but the obligation can change year over year based on the valuation of the property where you are and it is tough to prepare for that kind of volatility.”

Photo made available through a CC BY-SA 3.0 license.

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