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07/26/2016 02:30 PMDespite budget cuts, the state Department of Economic and Community Development’s Office of the Arts awarded grants to three different arts and culture organizations in town on July 18.
Chestnut Hill Concerts received $3,503 and Guilford Art Center, Inc., received $13,652, both through Supporting Arts in Place grants. The grant in particular works to provide operating support to arts organizations and municipal arts departments. The Shoreline Arts Alliance (SAA) received two grants—$29,733 through a Designated Regional Service Organization (DRSO) grant and $35,000 through a Regional Initiative Grant.
SAA CEO and Executive Director Eric Dillner said the group is pleased to receive the funding, though he noted that serving Guilford and other shoreline-area towns limited the grant amounts to the lower end of the spectrum.
According to Dillner, the state uses a formula based on potential community funding when considering DRSOgrants, so Guilford and surrounding communities’ relative wealth meant relatively low levels of state funding.
Dillner said the DRSO funds will help support local artists in the community.
“What it is used for is to provide services for a community of arts-interested folks as well as the arts organizations,” he said. “So we have about 100 organizations in our community that are considered member organizations and we help them with driving publicity out of our office out to about 1,500 folks in the community. We also provide a mentorship program to the organizations where we can help them with any of the business side of their artistic product.”
The Regional Initiative Grant will help provide funding directly to artistic endeavors in the community, according to Dillner, who said this grant program recently allowed SAA to offer a $5,000 grant toward the production of Carousel at Guilford High School.
“...anyone from our 24 towns can apply for a grant” from those funds, he said. “The money goes right back into our community, which is pretty awesome because it sets the stage for many opportunities for folks.”
The funding was announced by state legislators, including State Senator Ted Kennedy, Jr. (D-98) and State Representative Sean Scanlon (D-98), both of whom said they were pleased to see Guilford receive money for the arts.
“We are so fortunate to have a strong and growing arts and culture community here on the shoreline, and I’m very happy to see that the state has chosen to invest in these three great organizations who do so much each and every day to promote the arts and all art has to offer the citizens of Branford and Guilford,” said Scanlon.
“Our vibrant local arts community makes the shoreline a great place to live,” said Kennedy in a press release. “Organizations like the SAA are tremendous assets to our community. These grants will them support artists, students and organizations in continuing to contribute to our wonderful cultural landscape.”