In Sunday’s (3/8) Philadelphia Inquirer, Joann Loviglio writes, “Arts and cultural organizations are often dismissed as a frivolity, the first to go when the budget ax swings even as supporters tout them as powerful economic engines that employ workers and support businesses far beyond the cliché wine-and-cheese set. … But Philadelphia’s mayor, in a departure from his predecessor, believes the arts are key to generating revenue and strengthening the community. … Nutter cited figures from a recent Philadelphia Cultural Alliance report that arts and culture in the region employs 40,000 people and generates more than $1 billion in economic activity every year. More people visit the Philadelphia Museum of Art annually than a season of Philadelphia Eagles’ home games, he added. … Shortly after taking office, Nutter created a Mayor’s Cultural Advisory Council of some four dozen arts and cultural leaders to brief him on arts-related issues. He also reopened the Office of Arts and Culture eliminated in 2004 by former Mayor John F. Street as a cost-cutting move; it’s now called the Office of Arts, Culture and the Creative Economy.”
Posted March 10, 2009
Photo: Kimmel Center, Philadelphia
