In Wednesday’s (12/1) Star Tribune (Minneapolis), Graydon Royce reports, “Thanks to vigorous cost controls, the St. Paul Chamber Orchestra ended its 2009-10 fiscal year with a balanced budget, despite small declines in both audience numbers and donations. The organization announced its financial news at Wednesday’s annual meeting. This marks the seventh straight balanced budget for the SPCO, with expenses totaling just more than $11 million. That figure was down 9.3 percent from fiscal 2008-09 and resulted from layoffs and salary cuts made in February 2009. Sarah Lutman, president and managing director, said no additional cuts were necessary during the fiscal year that ended June 30. … The SPCO raised $7 million from donors, off 3 percent from the previous year. However, there was some good news. Not included in the 2009-10 figures, the Mellon Foundation announced two grants in the past year for upcoming projects involving digital media and archiving. One is a four-year, $1 million initiative. Paid attendance during 2009-10 was 94,500 (81 percent capacity), down 4.7 percent and matching a decline in season subscriptions. Lutman anticipates slight growth in subscribers in the current year.”
Posted December 2, 2010
