Why a Phoenix councilmember voted against $1 million in arts and culture grants
Nearly 100 arts and cultural groups will share close to $1.3 million, thanks to grants approved by Phoenix leaders last week. But one City Council member voted against the awards and criticized the process.
“Our support for the arts should not be reserved for our downtown or central city,” said Councilwoman Betty Guardado. “All Phoenix communities should be given access to experience and appreciate the arts. It is the job of our arts and culture department to ensure there is equity in our funding so that this becomes a reality.”
Guardado expressed dissatisfaction over arts and culture programs and priorities since she took office three years ago.
“We keep hearing about different programs that will be done in District 5 and out in the west side and we see no timelines on them,” she said.
Mayor Kate Gallego said the city’s arts and culture office has made changes to the grant program, like offering the portal in Spanish and opening the process to small LLCs and artists’ collaboratives.
“I think we’re not there yet but it does seem to me that the Arts and Culture Commission and our office is really trying to take important steps and we got an increase in applications this year which is exciting.”
Some of the smallest grants — around $2,500 — will go to the Hatcher Business Alliance, the Arizona LGBT plus history project and an artists collective called the Sacred Gs. The biggest grant, $45,000, will go to Ballet Arizona, followed by $41,000 for Phoenix Theatre, and $40,000 each for Phoenix Art Museum and Desert Botanical Garden.
By the April 4, 2022, application deadline, the Phoenix Office of Arts and Culture had received 110 applications. Of those, it determined 100 were eligible for support “and were reviewed by community panels made up of laypersons, artists, arts professionals, and educators to ensure a through and unbiased review.”
Of the 100 applications reviewed, 98 received funding.
Grant recipients
| Grantee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Act One | $18,750 |
| Advocates for Latino Arts & Culture Consortium | $5,000 |
| African Association of Arizona | $3,000 |
| Almost Famous Theatre Company | $10,000 |
| Alwun House Foundation | $6,500 |
| Arab American Festival | $2,850 |
| Arizona Aikido | $5,500 |
| Arizona Center for Nature Conservation (Phoenix Zoo) | $24,000 |
| Arizona Jewish Historical Society | $18,000 |
| Arizona LGBT+ History Project | $2,550 |
| Arizona Masterworks Chorale | $7,750 |
| Arizona Matsuri | $2,850 |
| Arizona Opera Company | $35,000 |
| Arizona Science Center | $31,000 |
| Arizona Theatre Company | $31,000 |
| Balkan Community Culture and Heritage Organization | $2,850 |
| Ballet Arizona | $45,000 |
| Black Theatre Troupe | $15,000 |
| CALA Alliance | $14,500 |
| Central Arts Alliance (Phoenix Center for the Arts) | $17,250 |
| Childrens Museum of Phoenix | $28,000 |
| Childsplay | $15,500 |
| Cihuapactli Collective | $15,500 |
| Convergence Ballet Company | $3,000 |
| Cultural Arts Coalition Celebrating Global Connections | $3,000 |
| Cultural Coalition | $12,750 |
| Desert Botanical Garden | $40,000 |
| Desert Overture Live Cultural Entertainment | $6,500 |
| Downtown Chamber Series | $9,500 |
| Familias Consulting | $2,850 |
| FEXAM Media | $2,700 |
| Free Arts for Abused Children of Arizona | $35,000 |
| Fuerte Art Collective | $2,700 |
| Furious Styles Crew | $2,700 |
| Genesis Program | $3,000 |
| Grassrootz Bookstore | $9,500 |
| Great Arizona Puppet Theater | $12,750 |
| Grey Box Collective | $10,000 |
| Harmony Project Phoenix | $12,750 |
| Hatcher Road Business Alliance | $2,550 |
| Heard Museum | $35,000 |
| Heartsy | $10,000 |
| Helios: a modern renaissance | $3,000 |
| Heritage Square Foundation | $12,750 |
| In The Q Records | $3,000 |
| Indige Design Collab | $2,850 |
| Irish Cultural and Learning Foundation | $7,000 |
| iTheatre Collaborative | $5,500 |
| Japanese Friendship Garden of Phoenix | $14,000 |
| Jazz in Arizona | $14,000 |
| Kids In Focus | $12,750 |
| Latina Dance Project | $2,850 |
| Movement Source | $3,000 |
| Musica Nova | $6,750 |
| Musical Instrument Museum | $35,000 |
| Musical Theatre of Anthem | $16,000 |
| North Valley Symphony Orchestra Inc | $7,750 |
| NUEBOX | $2,850 |
| Orpheus Male Chorus of Phoenix | $12,000 |
| Owlsong Productions | $3,000 |
| Palabras Bilingual Bookstore | $5,000 |
| Phoenix Art Museum | $40,000 |
| Phoenix Boys Choir | $18,750 |
| Phoenix Chamber Music Society | $14,000 |
| Phoenix Childrens Chorus | $19,250 |
| Phoenix Chinese Week | $2,850 |
| Phoenix Conservatory of Music | $15,500 |
| Phoenix Film Foundation | $12,250 |
| Phoenix Girls Chorus | $13,000 |
| Phoenix Institute of Contemporary Art | $8,750 |
| Phoenix Performing Arts Center (Herberger Theater Center) | $14,500 |
| Phoenix Symphony | $35,000 |
| Phoenix Theatre | $41,000 |
| Phoenix Womens Chorus | $6,500 |
| Phoenix Youth Circus Arts | $3,000 |
| Phoenix Youth Symphony Orchestras | $11,750 |
| Phonetic Spit | $14,000 |
| Playback Theatre of Arizona | $3,000 |
| Red Rocks Music Festival | $12,500 |
| Reframe Youth Arts Center | $13,500 |
| Rising Youth Theatre | $12,750 |
| Roosevelt Row Community Development Corporation | $11,000 |
| Rosies House a Music Academy for Children | $20,000 |
| Scorpius Dance Theatre | $6,000 |
| Shemer Art Center and Museum Association Inc Shemer | $15,000 |
| Skyes the Limit Foundation | $2,850 |
| Sounds Academy | $13,250 |
| Spotlight Youth Theatre | $11,250 |
| Teatro Bravo | $3,000 |
| Teatro Meshico | $6,500 |
| The Phoenix Chorale | $13,000 |
| The Sacred G's | $2,550 |
| The Sagrado | $8,750 |
| Valley Youth Theatre | $14,000 |
| Wasted Ink Zine Distro | $10,000 |
| Xico | $16,750 |
| Yes and Productions | $9,500 |
| Young Arts Arizona | $14,000 |
