The Bella Vista Arts Council gave a presentation to the city's advertising and promotion commission after a regular commission meeting on Jan. 25.
The council's chairman, Dave Barfield, stood up alongside fellow council member Terry Wilson to explain why he'd like to see collaboration between the two bodies and why it could be mutually beneficial.
Art isn't just pretty -- it brings in people, Barfield explained, which is in line with the advertising and promotion commission's goals.
Barfield used a concert he attended in Fayetteville as an example. He went to the concert for an anniversary, he said, and during the trip he paid for parking, bought a shirt and went to dinner before the show, then stayed at a bed and breakfast overnight.
"All of those activities generated jobs and income for somebody," Barfield said. "Art is not just food for the soul, it also puts food on the table."
Barfield said he recently attended an Americans for the Arts conference, during which local and state economic data were showcased. It's estimated, he said, that every dollar of tax money put into art generates a $3 return.
He's also developed a business model. Because the arts council is advisory to the city council, he said, it cannot spend money. Any funding the arts council may request, he said, will be managed by the Bella Vista Foundation.
The arts council, he said, has a list of potential projects and events, including an outdoor sculpture garden, an adopt-an-artist program for local businesses, a concert at the fireworks show and a"Bicycles, Bluegrass and Brats" festival, among others.
Because the commission could be in a position to fund projects, he said, the arts council may look to it for funding in the future -- though it will be looking at any and all funding options it can.
Barfield said he wanted to know if there will be a standard process for requesting funds and, if a request is made, what kind of timeframe it will involve or whether the commission would consider a fixed yearly amount or look at things on a case-by-case basis.
Paula Sanders, the advertising and promotion commission's chair, said there isn't currently an answer for those questions.
"These are all really good questions," she said.
Additionally, she said, the commission is likely to keep spending to a minimum in its first year, largely because nobody knows exactly what kind of income to expect.
She said that, while she is in favor of supporting the arts council's requests for funds, it will do best by showing how it may bring in business, particularly for the prepared foods and lodging industries that collect the taxes funding the commission.
"Let us know when you want to show us something and, between now and then, hopefully, we'll work out our process," she told the council.
General News on 02/07/2018