San Mateo County Hopes To Grow Arts Presence Through New Office

REDWOOD CITY, CA — San Mateo County officials hope to establish their home as an arts-rich community by 2030 – and have added a new department to help them do just that.

The San Mateo County Office of Arts and Culture will help implement the county's strategic plan for growing its arts community. It will be led by Robin Rodricks, a longtime San Mateo County Arts Commission volunteer who worked for a decade as a manager for the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco.

Rodricks' office will apply for federal, state and private funding for County arts and artists; manage state and federal grants; and integrate arts, culture and creativity into other county departments through collaboration, according to a news release from the county.

She will be tasked with implementing the county's strategic plan, which includes advocating for and building visibility for the arts in San Mateo County, establishing a countywide public and private sector Arts in Public Places Policy and Program and increasing equity in the arts, among other goals.

The county began brainstorming for what would become the Office of Arts and Culture after it granted $150,000 in federal Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act funds to local nonprofit arts and cultural groups. Donations from foundations and other sources meant that the total amount of grant money processed topped $230,000, the news release said.

Through that process, county officials realized that they needed a point person to work with the area's arts and cultural organizations, San Mateo County Manager Mike Callagy said in a statement.

Rodricks is now serving in that role, Callagy said, and she sees a thriving arts and culture scene as essential to San Mateo County's COVID-19 recovery.

"The arts are second responders," Rodricks said in a statement. "As we come out of the social isolation from the COVID-19 restrictions on gathering, the arts can help the community heal and grow. We are very much a part of the recovery effort."