help save the waterfront concert

Yes, the headline says it all. The beloved Waterfront Concert, a gift from the city of Portland to its citizens (with attendance reaching nearly 20,000), is in danger of losing its funding. It almost goes without saying that this just cannot stand – and if funding disappears this year as part of the 10% across the board cuts in all city departments (with some saying that cuts of the arts sector may be more along the lines of 15%), then it is unlikely to come back in the future. If you care about this issue, and want to save this dearly loved tradition, then please take the time to write and email, letter, or call the mayor and city commissioners. Below is a sample letter to use as a template, along with the email and phone numbers of the mayor and the rest of the city commissioners. Thanks for helping!

To the Honorable Mayor Hales and
Portland City Commissioners:

Thank you for your service to our City. During these budget-cutting times, I know your work must be very challenging. I deeply appreciate your thoughtful consideration of ways to spend less while keeping our city safe, peaceful, economically vital and livable.

It has come to my attention that the funding for the annual free Waterfront Concert may be in jeopardy. I write to say what a loss that would be for our fair city. Each year around 20,000 people—of all ages, races, and neighborhoods—enjoy each other’s company for a night of splendid music in the open air. Please save this extraordinary event. It’s one of the things that make our City such a great place to live, work and play.

Secondly, for more than three decades, the City of Portland’s annual investments in Regional Arts and Culture Council (RACC) have shaped Portland’s neighborhoods, expanded educational opportunities, fueled our economy and supported Portland’s vibrant and diverse cultural communities. Even still, I understand that RACC and every City Bureau must cut spending by 10% next year to help close the FY14 budget gap. Although these cuts will be painful, they will be shared fairly and equitably across the board, and I support them.

I am writing to you today, with urgency, to ask that no further cuts to RACC’s budget be considered. A budget cut proposal closer to $1.1 million was described on April 10th in the Willamette Week and I believe that such a cut would be devastating.

As you know, 62% of Portland voters supported an increase in funding for arts education and arts organizations last November with the passage of the Arts Education and Access Fund. I understand that legal challenges will likely prevent RACC from seeing any of that money in the 2013-14 fiscal year, so a loss of any amount could not be recaptured from the newly passed Arts Education and Access Fund. The vast majority (87%) of RACC’s funding goes to grants and services in the community, and these brutal cuts would reverberate across Portland’s classrooms and communities.

Please lend your support to a budget proposal that honors the will of the voters and the educational, cultural and economic interests of our City: Save our Waterfront Concert and keep RACC’s cuts limited to 10% of their special appropriation.

Thank you for your kind consideration.