Arts Culture Impact Website Referral
Motion 26 · Standing Committee of Council on City Finance and Services, May 20, 2026
Summary
- Motion to create an interactive website aggregating socio-economic impact data for Vancouver's arts and culture sector, modelled on the Toronto Arts Council's interactive map, to help organizations demonstrate their community and economic value when applying for grants.
- Staff feedback indicated the work substantially overlaps with ongoing reporting under a prior council motion on arts and culture investment, and characterized the proposal as not needed given existing online grant information.
- Referred to staff for information on Councillor Meiszner's motion; Councillors Fry, Orr, and Maloney voted against the referral.
Vote
Public comments
Read all 1 statements
Transcript
15 segments
Okay, I'll move you to the amendment queue. Councillor Meiszner, please add yourself there. And we need a seconder for Councillor Meiszner's amendment.
Second.
Yeah, thanks so much. So I was reviewing the staff feedback on this, and I would agree that there is some overlap with work that's currently underway or previously undertaken. And I would also note that the City of Vancouver's website does have comprehensive information around grants and how to apply for a grant. as well as contact information. But just on the overlapping work, parts of this motion overlap with work underway related to the council motion entitled Urgent Need for Investment in Arts and Culture, and staff are already reporting back to council on that in Q2, as well as the annual grant report that's going to be released later this month. Staff also noted that the scope outlined in the motion is, quote, resource-intensive, and would require staff or consultant resources. And advancing it would require trade-offs with other budget needs. So given the comprehensive information that's already existing online, I'd like to move to refer this to staff for information.
I'm a bit confused by Councillor Meiszner's explanation for... his motion, his move to refer, which is simply that council refer the motion to staff for information, which takes any direction out of it. which is perplexing. But we had both in that explanation that we're already doing enough and that it would be intensive staff work. So that's pretty contradictory. Also, I remember, in fact, I wrote it down. It struck me so much that Councillor Kirby Young in the last round of council meetings said, and I quote, a lot of this work is already underway, but putting an exclamation on it is never a bad thing. So I'm not sure why that only applies to the motions by the majority, but I guess I'll just leave it there. This referral obviously shoots down the motion but allows the majority on council to vote in favour of it, as you say, agree with it. So I guess that's all I have to say.
Yeah, I'll just continue with the staff feedback since Councillor Maloney may have missed the email that went to all councillors. But it does say, quote, staff interpret that this is substantially addressed through prior and ongoing work and is, quote, not needed. Staff has undertaken significant efforts to streamline grant processes and see, quote, limited opportunities for further gains in this area. Council direction to encourage process improvements in the grant programs is, quote, not needed. And this is ongoing work that's already underway. So with all that said, I think referring this to staff for information is the best course of action here. And we can move on to other council business. Thanks. Councillor Maloney.
Yeah, the members of the arts and culture. Sector in Vancouver that I talked to in generating this motion don't seem to agree that this is not not needed so I guess there's a difference of opinion in the actual sector with lived experience and The feedback that was given so I'll leave it at that Oh, I'm sorry. I'll just clarify that I will not be voting in favor of this referral Thanks consular war
Yeah, it's just, again, a little disappointing. I understand the rationale. I don't think it's mean-spirited, but I think that it was a pretty simple motion in that it was just... asking for an aggregation of the data that we're already collecting and it would be an interactive kind of thing that modeled off of what Toronto does. And that is very difficult for arts organizations and artists to sort of sift through the tons of the data that exists. A lot of times for artists, grant writing just becomes a full-time job. And it takes away from the time that they needed to actually create the art that we know and enjoy and love. And that makes Vancouver a better place to be. I struggle to see how just referring a report back... sort of helps move arts along in this way.
But yeah, unfortunately, I can't support the referral. I'll leave it there.
Thanks. All right, seeing no one else on the queue, so I'm going to call the vote. Clerk, please take us to the voting screen, and the council, please register your vote on the voting panel. We are voting on Councillor Meiszner's referral motion.
Chair, I'll take a vote. Is this in favor, please?
Councillor Kerbion. Councillor Bligh.
Oh, you did. You did. Yeah. Okay.
Statement Watch
All right, is anyone else cold in here? Because I definitely am. But good morning, everyone. Good morning, council members and our mayor. My name is Samaya Adam. I am a black Muslim woman, and I'm grateful to be here with you all today. I'm a community builder. However, I am here on behalf of Foundation for a Path Forward. So on foundation, I serve as their board member. And, you know, sometimes you got to do dutiful, do the full things and come and support your community. So that's why I'm here today. However, the foundation's work is really focused on strengthening communities and advancing anti-racism work across local, national, and global contexts. It is in partnership with Resilience BC under the Attorney General's office. Our work is really grounded in collaboration and practical community-led solutions to build stronger, safer, and healthier communities. And so with that, we are here today for a proclamation recognizing Eid al-Hadha. Eid al-Hadha, also known as the Festival of Sacrifice, which you also graciously shared, it is one of the most significant holidays and celebrations in the Muslim faith. It is rooted in generosity and sacrifice, and it is deeply connected to the values our community cares. So our community really values community care. It is rooted in service. and support. And so when we think about sacrifice, there has to be this willingness to do that. And so at the same time, we cannot ignore the sober context of next month. So this June actually marks five years since the devastating attacks on the Afzal family in London, Ontario, where three generations of Muslim families were taken from us in an act of Islamophobic violence. Even today, we continue to see that rise in Islamophobia. However, moments like today should remind us that while Muslim communities are celebrating, many of us are also navigating anxiety and grief from our day-to-day experiences. So while today is a very symbolic day and a recognition that is so needed, it is an opportunity to deepen our understanding of one another, as well as to build solidarity. And so, thank you for... convening us today because the importance of coming together across differences is what really builds healthier, stronger communities. And so I'm really grateful for the city of Vancouver for creating the space for its residents, opening seats at the table, and really instilling a sense of dignity, shared responsibility through power, shifts, dynamics, all of that. And so this is a place we all call home. And so again, I'm just going to say thank you for giving us the space.
All right. Thanks, everyone. Thanks for... Alright, so this is the plan for the day. We're going to break at noon for lunch and return at 1pm to continue to deal with the remainder of the agenda. If needed, we need to recess at 5pm for a dinner break and reconvene at 6pm to complete the agenda. Okay, so now the committee member will consider the matter adopted on consent. We have report number one on the consent agenda for the committee's consideration. We will hold report two and three to hear from the speakers.