Providence Art And Culture Nonprofits To Receive $2.5 Million

PROVIDENCE, RI — Arts and culture nonprofits are set to receive a total of $2.5 million in funding, city officials announced recently.

Mayor Jorge O. Elorza, Lizzie Araujo, Director of Providence’s Department of Art, Culture + Tourism (ACT) and Francis Parra, Executive Artistic Director of Teatro ECAS today joined community members to announce the selection of 18 arts or culture-based nonprofit organizations to receive grant funding through the Providence American Rescue Plan Act.

The money will be used for capital repairs and renovations to existing facilities, and the construction of new ones, officials said.

The 18 nonprofits selected for grant funding through the ARPA Infrastructure Notice of Funding Availability (NOFA) are:

• 134 Collaborative
• Community MusicWorks
• Dirt Palace Public Projects
• DownCity Design
• Education Center of Arts and Sciences
• Genesis Center
• Higher Ground International
• International House of Rhode Island Inc.
• New Urban Arts
• Next Generation & Futures
• Providence Performing Arts Center
• Providence Preservation Society
• Southside Community Land Trust
• Southside Cultural Center of RI
• The Players
• The Steel Yard
• Trinity Repertory Company
• Wilbury Theatre Group

“Providence continues to live up to its name as the Creative Capital by recognizing the importance of the arts, and today's infrastructure investments will lay an important foundation that prioritizes the creative and cultural sector,” said Mayor Jorge O. Elorza

“These 18 organizations, among countless others, help make our City the innovative, brilliant, and beautiful place that it is. These funds will ensure our vibrant arts and culture community continues to receive the support it needs to thrive and flourish.

Applicants were able to apply for up to $750,000 of demonstrated need to cover capital repairs and renovations to existing facilities and the construction of new ones.

To be eligible for funding, applicants were required to submit a budget narrative that described the negative impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, existing construction plans, cost estimates, and/or feasibility studies.

“We often talk about creating space for the arts to exist, and while creating space can mean many different things, today it literally means creating and maintaining arts infrastructure,” said Lizzie Araujo, the City of Providence’s Director of Art, Culture + Tourism.

“By investing in our local art-based non-profits with funding for their facilities, we are supporting their continued success and the enrichment of our community as a whole."