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City Hall Wants Your Help With 2012 Cultural Plan

By Chris Bentley in Arts & Entertainment on Feb 17, 2012 4:40PM

2012_2_17_cultural_plan.png If the crowd last night at Edgewater’s Nicholas Senn High School was any indication, the Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events struck oil with its call for public comment on the forthcoming Chicago Cultural Plan.

Aldermen Harry Osterman (48th) and James Cappleman (46th) were among the approximately 150 people who showed up Thursday to voice their ideas for the city’s first new cultural plan in more than 25 years.

Chicago’s 1986 cultural plan was the product of an 18-month outreach program modeled after community organizing techniques. This time, with the help of social media, the city is taking a similar approach.

“What ends up in the plan,” said Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events commissioner Michelle T. Boone, “will depend up on what you come up with.”

Participants in the town hall-style meeting broke out into groups, discussing topics from zoning and tax relief to arts education funding. Most sounded a common refrain in Chicago politics: Focus on the neighborhoods.

Wicked will do fine without support from the city,” said writer Ian Belknap. Instead of pouring resources into developing downtown, he added, Chicago should encourage storefront theaters and neighborhood venues.

There will be two more town hall meetings: Saturday, Feb. 18 at the DuSable Museum and Tuesday, Feb. 21 at the National Museum of Mexican Art. After that, DCASE will host 19 “neighborhood cultural conversations” and 10 “cultural sector focus groups,” before releasing a draft of the 2012 Chicago Cultural Plan in late Spring. They’re soliciting comments throughout on their website.

Mayor Rahm Emanuel has said the arts will be a focus of his administration. The man was at one time a ballet dancer, after all.

Funding for arts education, community cultural hubs and live/work art spaces — recurring ideas at last night’s town hall ¬— could challenge the Mayor’s commitment to supporting the arts in the current financial climate. But proponents say arts funding is a win-win, driving economic development by empowering communities.

We want to hear from you. What do you think the city should do to promote the arts with its 2012 Cultural Plan?