Boulder offers grants to rebuild arts, culture workforce

BOULDER — Funded through the American Rescue Plan Act, Boulder is offering grants to local arts and cultural organizations for the purpose of hiring workers lost during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Artists had a rough time through the pandemic,” Boulder City Councilman Matt Benjamin said in a prepared statement. “These musicians, photographers, painters, authors … are often gig economy workers who lost jobs and contracts due to the restrictions, venue closures and recession. They are also a keystone sector of Boulder’s economy; the National Endowment for the Arts points out that our city has one of the highest concentrations of working, professional artists in the country. Yet, their industry is not bouncing back as quickly as the rest of the economy. This funding from the city’s ARPA grant will help fill in that gap and build back resilience among these small business owners.”

Applications are open through July 11 for 10 grants of $87,900 each.

The Boulder Arts Commission will decide on the grants at its meeting on Wednesday, July 20, at 6 p.m. The meeting is open to the public.

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