Yes We CAN

When Mayor Sam Adams and other elected officials unveiled ACT FOR ART: A Creative Action Plan for the Portland Metropolitan Region last spring, it signaled that the arts community might finally be ready to identify and implement a dedicated funding mechanism for arts and culture that would generate some $15 to $20 million annually. It all seemed so doable based on some polling that had been conducted a long, long time ago, in the spring of 2008 before the Second Greatest Depression struck. But how, people have been asking, do the voters feel now?

Pretty much the same, it turns out. If anything, a new poll reveals, the voters are even more aware of the need for sustainable funding of arts and culture. Makes sense given the increased attention that arts organizations have been getting in the media lately.

You can read a summary of the new poll, commissioned by the Creative Advocacy Network, here. (It's not on their website yet but I did get permission to share it with the world.) And join other arts enthusiasts for a CAN information gathering tomorrow night, Wednesday, August 5th, from 4:30 to 6:30 in the The Gerding Theater at the Armory. Their new Executive Director, Jessica Jarratt, will be on hand to answer all of your burning questions.