A $200,000 study, funded by the Warren-Washington Industrial Development Agency (WWIDA), will assess and evaluate the economic and social impacts of the region’s arts and cultural organizations and institutions – and, perhaps, show how they can lift the economy and the region’s quality of life to even greater heights.
“We lack a thorough understanding of the breadth of the creative economy, broadly defined, in Warren and Washington Counties,” said Chuck Barton, president and CEO of WWIDA. “We saw an opportunity to not only quantify the impacts of the creative economy, but seed a cluster of action items that would help it grow and prosper in both counties.”
According to John Lefner, the president and CEO of The Hyde Collection and a founder of Mosaic, the loose coalition of arts organizations that catalyzed the study, two consulting firms out of the many that submitted proposals were selected to lead the study – LaBella Associates and Camoins Associates.
“The study is already underway, and I’m just thrilled about this,” said Lefner.
According to Barton, the study is expected to take roughly nine months to complete.
“Our focus at this stage is defining the creative economy; we’ve adopted a broad definition, one that includes not only theaters and museums, but wineries, distilleries, breweries and some retail shops,” said Chuck Barton, the former CEO of Barton International, the 150-year-old Warren County-based mining operation.
Surveys, aimed at arts organizations and agritourism businesses as well as audiences and consumers, have also been crafted and are now being distributed throughout the region by the WWIDA, its consultants and by the organizations themselves.
According to WWIDA, the data will help the consultants measure how much cultural attractions and events contribute to local businesses, tourism and quality of life, while providing organizations with information they can use to compete for grants, attract additional funding and demonstrate the value of continued investment in the region’s cultural sector. The patrons’ survey asks residents and visitors about their participation in local concerts, festivals, museums, galleries, historic sites and agritourism attractions
“We’re pushing it through everyone’s contact lists in order to get as many people as possible to respond; the greater the participation, the richer the data,” said Barton.
“We are relying upon the community to participate in the survey so we can start aggregating the data,” said John Lefner, whose museum distributed the survey at its Community Day on August 2, as well as through other media.
According to Alex Lombard, the president and CEO of the Lake George Music Festival, the survey’s results “will be important not only for the Lake George Music Festival, but also for museums, theaters, galleries, farms, historic sites, artists and cultural organizations across our region.”
Lombard noted, “This study is one of the most significant regional studies of its kind, and its findings will help inform future decisions affecting funding, marketing, tourism, economic development and public investment.”
Once the data is distilled and the WWIDA has a more accurate view of the creative economy, “we expect the arts groups to come up with action items,” said Barton, who noted parenthetically that “WWIDA, has been very clear that it will not be implementing actions. We’re here to facilitate, not to lead.”
“Everyone participating in Mosaic agrees that his study was not meant to sit on a shelf and collect dust,” said John Lefner.
One likely “action item” is something Alex Lombard calls a “Regional Multi-Destination Arts and Culture Pass” that would enable holders to circumvent time-consuming, cumbersome and outdated ticketing platforms with one new streamlined vendor.
“A unified digital system and simple reservation tools would make it effortless to explore the full regional arts ecosystem without repeated transactions or barriers,” said Lombard.
According to Chuck Barton, “the fact that the Mosaic group is already brainstorming this idea and taking off as a working group is a positive sign.”
The economic impacts of the arts and culture extend far beyond blockbuster shows or exhibitions that attract day-trippers and even over-night lodgers, said Barton.
“Growing businesses always seek to attract talent, and talent will always look at the area to see what it has to offer. A vibrant creative economy is part of what we have to offer. It’s intertwined with our larger ecosystem of natural beauty and outdoor recreation,” said Barton.
Although the results of the study will not be known or assimilated for some time, “hopefully, we will have something that will be a game changer for both Warren and Washington Counties,” said Barton.
