Re-Imagine grants look to spark downtown activity
By Lethbridge Herald on July 4, 2022.
Herald photo by Al Beeber
Quinn Larder, performing as Dusty, puts some muscle into his performance during the Hootenanny production of “The Junk Story” Saturday morning at Galt Gardens. The outdoor theatrical production being staged this month in Galt Gardens is one of the recipients of the Re-Imagine Downtown Activation Grant initiative.Alejandra Pulido-Guzman – LETHBRIDGE HERALD – apulido@lethbridgeherald.com
Lethbridge residents will have plenty of events to choose from this summer thanks in part to a Re-Imagine Downtown Activation Grant that many local organizations have received.
The grant program is designed to facilitate the re-imagining of Downtown’s vacant and under-utilized spaces, by supporting initiatives that look to create a critical mass of activity that supports local businesses, fosters healthy and safe social settings, and provides a feeling of safety and security through positivity.
Through the evaluative process in their third intake of applications, the review panel and the Heart of Our City Committee provided funding to nine initiatives that are being partially or fully funded with a total of $80,500.
One of the recipients this year is Hootenanny 2022, which will bring a month-long, free, outdoor theatrical production for all ages presented at Galt Gardens throughout July.
Co-founder, producer and artist director of Hootenanny 2022, Nicola Elson said the application process is pretty user friendly.
“I’ve applied for my share of grants during my time, some are very time consuming, but the city of Lethbridge municipal grants are actually pretty easy to fill out, so that’s really great and we got $20,000 from the city for this production,” said Elson.
She said the grant is being used to employ emerging local artists and pay them a wage.
“In this production we have a stage manager, two actors, designer for costume set and props, and a sound designer and we also have somebody coming in to help with extra builds for this show. That’s where the bulk of the money is going towards,” said Elson.
She said some of the money goes towards marketing as well.
“We’re very reliant on the grant because the whole ethos behind it is that we wanted to be free to the public, we don’t want to charge ticket price for people to come into the park and we want it to be in Galt Gardens so that as much of a diverse can attend,” said Elson.
She said they want anybody who would like to come to the park to be able to do so, and to eliminate any financial barriers that might stop them from coming to enjoy the show.
Another recipient was the Lethbridge Jazz Society, which will host a series of live music events in downtown showcasing local, provincial, and Canadian artists.
“The grant really supports almost all the work we do over the course of the year, and certainly having the funds from Heart of our City really helps us accomplish some of the things that we have set for in the near term and hopefully in the long term too,” said Mike Prociw, president of Lethbridge Jazz Society.
Marketing director for LJS added that the grant at this point is their primary funder underlying their main operation.
“If it wasn’t for what they were doing, we would not be able to succeed in hosting these events so it’s fundamental, and I actually think especially in a city of this size, especially post COVID actually having live events happening, music events happening in downtown is pretty important to make sure we have a downtown that serves everyone’s needs,” said McKillop.
He said the grant also helps them achieve more sponsorship from other organizations.
“I think a lot of organizations understand too, that we have a plan in place that is worth funding and that is worth supporting, so the heart of the city funding is essential really for all of that,” said McKillop.
Other recipients of the Re-Imagine Downtown Activation Grant are:
· Allied Arts Council for their Lethbridge ArtDays
· Lethbridge Shakespeare Performance Society for Shakespeare in the Park – Hamlet.
· 10th Annual Lethbridge Electronic Music Festival
· Downtown BRZ for their Foodie Fest and Downtown Farmers’ Market
· Primo Music Association for their Centric MusicFest Pop-up Concerts
· U of L Conservatory of Music for their First Friday Lunch and Listen Concert Series
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27-26
Charging money to get into Galt Gardens is the best idea I’ve heard for downtown revitalization ever!!