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Published August 14, 2007
The Price Tag There were many skeptics a decade ago who thought Modesto never could raise enough money to build a performing-arts center. The community wasn't wealthy enough, they said. But 3,400 residents and businesses dug deep into their pockets and contributed a combined $24 million, paying nearly half of the $55 million needed to launch the Gallo Center for the Arts. "It indicates at a grass-roots level how much support there is for the center," said Dave Pier, the downtown Modesto venue's executive director. The rest of the funding came from government sources, including $15 million from Stanislaus County and $1 million from the state. The building is owned by the county and operated by the nonprofit Central Valley Center for the Arts, which rents it for $1 a year.
Originally, the city of Modesto was supposed to be a partner in the Gallo center, too, and was to contribute $15 million. But in 1999, it backed out after an election that brought in four new City Council members. Modesto voters also rejected a proposal to increase the hotel/motel tax, which would have dedicated $7.5 million to the arts center. But Gallo center supporters believed they could get private support to make up the difference and decided to go forward with the project, said Fred Silva, chairman of the arts center board. "This project isn't about one person or a group of people," he said. "It's a community effort." The city still may end up paying about $1 million for street improvements. Silva hopes the city eventually will consider helping the arts center with annual contributions. The arts center will operate on a $6.5 million annual budget, with about 40 percent going to presenting acts and the remainder going to staff, utilities, marketing and general upkeep. The county has agreed to handle maintenance costs beyond $100,000 a year. Tickets and rental fees are expected to bring in $3 million. The arts center also will depend on $650,000 a year in interest from the $15 million endowment funded by the Gallo families and the Mary Stuart Rogers Foundation. In addition, the arts center will need to continue fund-raising efforts to keep the doors open. No arts center around the country is able to support itself solely from tickets sales and fees.
The arts center also is continuing to work on paying off $14 million in bonds it took out to get construction started. "Carrying this debt forward will tend to constrain the center's ability to reach its full potential in terms of breadth and depth of programs it can offer," Pier said. Silva is confident the center will be financially feasible years into the future. He thinks residents can be counted on to support the center annually with their contributions because they believe in the project and think it benefits everyone. "I believe we have changed expectations and ground rules for fund-raising in the Central Valley," Silva said. |
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Private/public partnerships like this are not uncommon for operating arts centers around the
country. A 2003 analysis of eight comparable facilities for the Gallo center found that the
majority were owned by a city and operated by a nonprofit organization.
"The annual fund-raising will take two forms — an annual fund-raising campaign
plus sponsorships of specific events, series and the season as a whole," Pier said. |
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Copyright © 2011, The Modesto Bee.
