An Investment In The Arts

I study war, so that our children can study business, law,

commerce and invention, so that their children can study

art, poetry and music.

—John Adams

As John Adams suggested two centuries ago, culture and the arts are the ultimate measure of a civilization’s progress. While our civilization is still mired in war and preoccupied with politics and commerce, we continue to aspire to be an artistic and creative people. Unfortunately, as we collectively set our priorities, those less lofty, more expedient cogs in the great wheel of history tend to come first. Despite the calls to our conscience from advocates of “art for art’s sake,” our commerce-driven culture is not inclined to invest in enterprises that do not earn a return. But now, that tendency may finally be working to the advantage of the arts community.

Academics and urban planners have demonstrated over the past decade, in a variety of studies, that artistic and cultural activities enhance communities significantly, yielding measurable increases in property values and economic activity. People want to live and work in towns and cities where art thrives. Those places quickly begin to generate employment and economic activity. According to one study by the Connecticut Commission on Culture and Tourism, nonprofit art and cultural enterprises contributed almost $900 million to the state’s economy in 2002 and employed about 18,000 people.

This dynamic has not escaped the noticed of our political leaders. Just last month, Governor M. Jodi Rell announced a “Cultural Treasures” initiative for Connecticut, which is supposed to create an annual $10 million revenue stream to support the state’s art community. “Simply put, I see plenty of room for job growth in our state’s arts industry, and I want to do everything I can to stimulate and expand it,” she explained.

If public money is now going to flow more freely to arts programs around the state, Newtown needs to be prepared to formally request, receive, and administer funds on behalf of local arts and cultural organizations. After languishing in a Legislative Council committee since the beginning of the year, a proposed ordinance creating a local Cultural Arts Commission has finally emerged for a public hearing (to be scheduled) and action by the full council.

We urge the council to expedite the creation of this new commission so that Newtown can more effectively do its small part in advancing the cause of civilization.