In Response to the 2016 Budget Cuts to Municipal Arts Funding

Our city and our province rely on the arts. 

While it's widely accepted that our music, our festivals, and our vibrant culture capture the imaginations of those living beyond our province’s border, inspiring an inflow of dollars from tourists, cruise ships, and conference goers, we are equally concerned with the impact these cuts will have on the people who call St. John’s home.

Members of the Business & Arts NL community want to live, work, and participate in a vibrant St. John's, filled with energy and potential. We believe successful cities value the arts, and that the role artists play in culture is essential.

Artists contribute new knowledge. And this diversity of thought and imagination makes us more resilient, and more able to thrive in times of great change.

As the City is facing a period of economic challenge we believe that our cultural industries will be of heightened importance. Now is entirely the wrong time to reduce investment in this critical business sector.

In discussions with some of our business members, all of whom pay taxes to the municipality, we believe it is important we meet with politicians and officials at St. John's City Hall to discuss the seriousness of the threat to the well-being of our cultural community.

This echoes the view that arts and culture contribute enormously not only to the economic interests of this community, but also to its overall health as a place to live and work.

We look forward to the opportunity to meet with City representatives to discuss this critically important matter. 

Bryhanna Greenough,

General Manager - Business & Arts NL