There's a behind-the-scenes war going on under the Cultural Umbrella here. At stake is which organization will administer the $550,000 budget the Tourist Development Council (TDC) allots annually to assist and promote the arts in Monroe County.
The combatants: The Florida Keys Council of the Arts and the Federated Chambers of Commerce, an organization made up of all the Chambers of Commerce in the Keys. The judges in this case— the people who will determine who wins the war— are the five County Commissioners. They are expected to make their decision at their meeting in Key Largo, August 15-16.
Our position is that this is really a no-brainer. Why should the Chambers of Commerce— whose mission is to promote business and development— play any role at all in administering a budget to promote the arts? Put the following arguments on the scale and weigh them:
• The Florida Keys Council on the Arts is Monroe County's official arts agency, as designated by the County Commission. It's sole mission is to promote the arts.
• The Chambers of Commerce have no artistic or cultural mission.
• The Monroe County Comprehensive Plan designates the Arts Council— not the Chambers of Commerce— as the lead organization for implementing the cultural elements of the plan.
• The selection of the Arts Council to administer the Cultural Umbrella would bring it into philosophical alignment with the TDC's two other "umbrellas"— the Fishing Umbrella and the Diving Umbrella. Both of these other umbrellas are administered by professionals from within those industries— not the Chambers of Commerce.
Having made those points, it should be noted that the Chambers of Commerce have played an important interim role in administering the Cultural Umbrella monies. When the Cultural Umbrella was first established back in the 80s, there was no county-wide arts organization. The administrative job was assumed by the Key West Art & Historical Society (KWAHS). When the KWAHS resigned that responsibility, the Chambers of Commerce stepped in to fill the need for administration. But, now, there is a well-established, highly-regarded county-wide Arts Council. It is simply logical that this be the agency that administers the Cultural Umbrella here.
But not so fast, says Melissa Kendrick. Kendrick is the chief fund-raiser for the Mel Fisher Maritime Museum, as well as the president of the Key West Chamber of Commerce. She also sits on the boards of the TDC's District One Advisory Council (DAC1) and the Cultural Umbrella. Not surprisingly, she likes the administrative setup exactly like it is— if, for no other reason, her museum is consistently one of the top recipients of TDC money.
But, she argues, that's not because of her influential role within every single one of the entities that decide TDC funding for the arts here. She says that she and others at the museum are simply able to write strong grant proposals and put together compelling exhibits. She says she recuses herself when any discussions of money for the Mel Fisher Museum come up. That may be the case. But not even she can argue that there's not at least the appearance of a titanic conclict-of-interest here.
When talking about the administration of the Cultural Umbrella, Kendrick clearly embraces the Chamber of Commerce line: "Administration of the Cultural Umbrella should convey the interests of the DAC, the TDC and the County Commission in putting heads in beds," she says.
"No, no, no!" editorialized arts guru David Ethridge in Solares Hill last week. He said that this kind of thinking is exactly why the responsibility for administering the Cultural Umbrella should be transferred to the Arts Council. "The arts in Monroe County must be delinked from the chore of putting heads in beds . . . the purpose of art is art, not commerce," he said.
But there is still another reason for the County Commission to transfer the administration of the Cultural Umbrella to the Arts Council. Former County Mayor Shirley Freeman has agreed to chair the Umbrella if the transfer happens. When Freeman was on the Commission, she was the Commissioner appointed to the Arts Council. She also served as the Arts Coordinator for the Monroe County School District. But, perhaps most importantly, Mayor Freeman would not bring to the table the conflict-of-interest baggage that some who sit at the table now carry.
At least one member of the Cultural Umbrella board, David Cohn, has already announced his support for the transfer of administration to the Arts Council. Cohn is a gallery owner in Islamorada and a member of the boards of the Islamorada Chamber of Commerce and the Arts Council.
As Kendrick and others opposed to the transfer lobby the County Commissioners— and, we hear, the lobbying has been intense— a primary argument is this: "Why not just let the current contract with the Chambers run out? A new Request For Proposal will be sent out in the Spring. Let the Arts Council and all other interested parties apply for the job of administering the arts funds— and let the County Commission sort it out at that time."
Well, that sounds reasonable, doesn't it? But would the Federated Chambers of Commerce be one of the "interested parties" and simply continue the current lobbying effort to keep control of the funds?, we asked. "Maybe. Maybe not," committed Kendrick.
The fact is that the contract has a release clause and the Chambers of Commerce have been playing an interim role in this effort. It is simply time to turn over administration of the TDC arts funding to the Arts Council.
Not even those associated with the Federated Chambers of Commerce seem to be arguing that the Chambers can do a more credible job of administering arts money than the Arts Council. But, yet, for some reason, they don't want to give up control.
Here's the simple question the County Commissioners will be addressing at their meeting in a couple of weeks: Who would you rather have administering the money allotted by the TDC to promote the arts— the County's official Arts Council, whose only mission is to promote the arts; or the Chamber of Commerce, whose primary mission is to promote business and development?
Let's all watch together to see which Commissioners are in the pocket of the Chambers of Commerce and which aren't.