The New York City Department of Cultural Affairs has launched a recently modified application for cultural organizations seeking funding for 2023 that promises to make the review process for potential recipients more equitable.
The changes were made to the city’s Cultural Development Fund, from which the government distributes money to support cultural organizations throughout New York City.
In a statement, the agency said it would consider “greater recognition of historically marginalized communities, an increase in the minimum grant size, and the appointment of review panel members who reflect New York City’s diversity,” as steps to address past inequalities in the grant process.
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“New York City’s artists and cultural organizations reflect the diversity of New Yorkers and have connected us through generations,” New York City Mayor Eric Adams said in a statement. “The Cultural Development Fund ensures that New York City’s cultural ecosystem remains strong, inclusive, and the best in the world.”
This news comes just weeks after Laurie Combo was appointed as the new commissioner for the department. Combo oversees department policies related to the financing of technical organizations across the five departments. In a statement, Combo described the agency’s development fund as “one of the most important ways our city is investing in its cultural community.” She added that the office is also focusing on hiring a staff that represents more than diverse backgrounds.
The repairs are part of Mayor Adams’ blueprint for the city’s economic recovery after the pandemic. In a statement, the department described the government’s investment in the cultural sector as “an essential part of the city’s overall recovery.”
In December, DCLA distributed $51.4 million in grants to more than 1,000 cultural nonprofits across New York City as part of a development fund initiative. The move marks the largest fund allocation in the department’s history, after a period of arts financial pressure amid lockdown restrictions that shuttered many institutions.
“It is imperative that the recovery be just,” DCLA Council member Chi Osei said in the statement.
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