The city is looking at a variety of strategies for assisting creative businesses and nonprofit organizations that are increasingly being priced out of theaters and other spaces due to Austin’s fast-rising cost of living. At its Thursday meeting, City Council unanimously passed a resolution that directs city staff to research five economic development and policy […]
Cultural Arts Division
Posted inMusic & Entertainment
City looks to retain arts and culture amid growth
A pair of reports from the Cultural Arts Division of the Economic Development Department give city leaders perhaps the clearest road map yet for how to preserve and create artistic and cultural clusters that many worry are threatened by rapid growth. The documents – the Cultural Asset Mapping Project Report and Thriving in Place: Supporting […]
Posted inMusic & Entertainment
After a successful first year, the Art Space Assistance Program will not continue
The Art Space Assistance Program that is aimed at assisting creative-focused nonprofits facing permanent displacement, those previously displaced, or those facing lease renewals at substantially higher rates did not receive funding from City Council for 2018. Council approved $200,000 of General Fund money for the new program in June. The program was intended for organizations […]
Posted inLand Development Code
Flexibility, affordability top CodeNEXT concerns for creatives
Ambitions for flexible arts spaces, affordable living options and improved transit options are some of the common themes among artists and their supporters considering how they want CodeNEXT to reshape the city’s growth. Those viewpoints were among the dozens offered Wednesday at a forum for musicians and other creatives organized by the city’s Music and […]
Posted inMusic & Entertainment
As rents push artists out, city seeks alternative space in houses of worship
In recent years, Austin’s creative community has been feeling the brunt of the city’s affordability crisis. As rents continue to rise, many artists have moved away, and studios and galleries have closed their doors. Now, the city is looking to provide creative space for artists in some unexpected places, by partnering with local houses of […]