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Cultural Groups in Lower Manhattan May Get Some Relief

Culture Chronicle

Downtown Cultural Groups Could Get Windfall
Lower Manhattan Development Corp. set to release $28 million in community enhancement funds to neighborhood organizations.

Crain's New York Business - July 16, 2010
By Miriam Kreinin Souccar


The struggling cultural groups in Lower Manhattan may soon get some relief.

The Lower Manhattan Development Corp. is in discussions to release the remainder of its cultural and community enhancement funds to neighborhood organizations, an amount sources say is around $28 million.

A spokesman for LMDC acknowledged the issue had been discussed at the last two board meetings, most recently on June 24th. A working group of trustees, Kevin Rampe, Julie Menin, Carl Weisbrod and Kate Levin, was recently created to establish guidelines for how to distribute the funds and to whom.

This round of grants would be the third from the LMDC to cultural and community groups. In 2007, it gave out more than $37 million to 33 nonprofits including the Museum of Chinese in the Americas, New York Downtown Hospital, and the public schools in Lower Manhattan. In 2005, $35 million was doled out to a number of groups including a $10 million grant to help the Drawing Center build a home downtown.

Executives at cultural organizations in the area, which have suffered from major losses in funding during the recession, say the money is sorely needed.

"The money has been sitting there for years," says Kevin Cunningham, executive artistic director of 3-Legged Dog/3LD Art & Technology Center, which presents theatrical and multimedia works. "We urged them 18 months ago that with the recession, now would be a good time to release it."

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