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VASA out of the woods

City council votes 5-2 to top off funding by $16,000; mayor worried about setting precedent
0910 VASA hl
Visual Arts Studio Association (VASA) of St. Albert president Carol Watamaniuk speaks to city council Oct. 7, asking for $16,000 to keep the arts organization afloat this year. HANNAH LAWSON/Photo

Despite worries of creating a precedent for other local non-profits, city council granted the St. Albert Visual Arts Studio Association its plea for a $16,000 top-up to its funding.

On Monday, council voted on a motion brought forward by Coun. Ken MacKay to provide the requested dollars to cover the studio’s shortfall for the year. VASA previously presented to council they would not last the year without a funding top-up.

The motion passed 5-2, with Mayor Cathy Heron and Coun. Natalie Joly opposed.

Joly argued while “belt-tightening” is occurring provide-wide, that needs to “happen everywhere.”

“I really think it’s really unfair to ask other organizations to tighten their belts if we’re not asking that across the board,” she said.

This year, VASA had its funding cut 45 per cent compared to last year, under the city’s outside agency operating grant program, going from $50,000 last year to $27,378 in 2019.

Last year, city council approved changes to its outside operating grant program, which saw an overall increase to the pot of money available, but also opened up the grant to new agencies. As a result, some groups saw their funding cut nearly in half.

Coun. Ken McKay said VASA is an example of “unintended consequences” rearing their head from the policy change.

Heron opposed the motion, arguing if council does not like its policy, they should change it and avoid “one-offs”.

“I might be leaning on the side of follow your own policies and not setting a precedent for others to come in, because we are about to enter a budget season and there will be lots of people coming in with requests,” she said. “We’re not going to be able to answer all of them, even if we want to.”

VASA said it provides affordable gallery space for amateur artists, while also run programming for adults with developmental disabilities. VASA president Carol Watamaniuk previously said the studio would be reduced to nothing more than gallery space – scaling back an essential part of the “visual arts puzzle in St. Albert.”

MacKay said this programming reduction is what really hit him, given the “social benefit” VASA provides.

“We’re talking about $16,000, but we don’t know what the impact is going to be on one of these adults with developmental disabilities,” he said.

Watamaniuk said she was “very pleased” to have VASA’s funding request approved, and said she is speaking with city administration about a potential, more permanent, funding solution.

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