Healdsburg Arts Council

Policy

The board is unanimously committed to the concept of arts facilities for the community.
Community Needs
To gain credibility, acceptance and support, any Healdsburg Arts Council (HAC) arts facility must be perceived as fulfilling the broader needs of the community for arts and arts education, in addition to the needs of our constituent artists.
It is the board's expectation that the Arts Council will endeavor to continually assess community needs, and construct programs and events that are designed to deliver value by fulfilling as many of those needs as possible.
While recognizing HAC's focus on "supporting arts and arts education for our community," it is the board's intent that any HAC arts facility must be conceived, funded and operated in coordination with other community facilities and programs having objectives complimentary to our own (e.g. H-PAT; Community Center).

Planning

A written Business Plan* (BP) for funding, developing and operating arts facilities for our community will be presented to and approved by the board before any funds may be solicited, or any HAC assets may be obligated.
* Business Plan - A term borrowed from the "for-profit" industry that has become a euphemism for a written document that defines a very broad set of elements considered to be critical to the achievement of a defined goal. The term "business" need not assume "profit." While there are many models for a business plan, most will include these fundamental topics: Direction, Client Needs, Value Proposition, Purpose, Critical Success Factors, Implementation Time Line, Financial Analysis, Risks and Contingencies, and Tactics.
Realistically, as knowledge and funding become available, the project plans may need to be developed in phases (e.g., Endowment Phase; Occasional Temporary Facilities Phase; Early Facility Acquisition; and Development Phase, Operational Phase, etc.). Each major phase so identified will require a written plan approved by the board addressing the business planning steps appropriate to that phase of the project, and which, when taken together, constitute a complete BP for the entire project.
It is imperative that the BP state the specific community needs to be addressed (especially recognizing the unique demographics and cultural diversity of our community), and succinctly describe how the community will likely realize fulfillment (e.g., Value Propositions).
It is expressly recognized by the board that the Healdsburg Arts Council cannot realize the full potential success of this project without proactively seeking mutually beneficial partnerships of synergy with other community nonprofit organizations. Therefore, the BP will identify specific opportunities (e.g., H-PAT, Community Center, Boys and Girls Club, etc.).
To optimize the potential value to be gained from the finite sources of funding and limited availability of other community assets while at the same time, and to minimize scheduling conflicts and charter confusion (e.g., by considering multiple use of individual facilities, and integrated use of multiple facilities), a realistic time line will be established for each phase of the project. Each timeline will distinguish all critical interdependencies of the primary activities. Further, major milestones of each phase will be established along with the specific criteria required for successfully completing them. (e.g., check-pointed project time lines).
Potential risks (e.g., facility location, local economy, population changes, etc.) to the success of each phase of the project are to be assessed realistically, and contingency plans and exit strategies will be devised for the most likely deviations (e.g., Scenario Analysis).

Funding

A primary focus of the Healdsburg Arts Facilities Project was to acquire, develop and maintain physical assets owned by HAC. A separate 501(c)(3) organization will be established for the Healdsburg Arts Facilities Endowment Fund. The definition of the use of these endowment funds for multiple use facilities will be broadly stated so as not to misrepresent our intent to donors. A Funding Oversight Committee of the Healdsburg Arts Council will administer the Fund.
Funding for temporary arts facilities, as well as funding for facility operation and program delivery will be separate from the endowment funding for permanent solutions.
All appropriate sources of funding (e.g., individual, organizational, governmental) will be sought from within and beyond the community.
It is expressly acknowledged that all sources of funding, especially from within our community, are finite. We therefore recognize and respect other community nonprofit requirements for funding, and will construct our own activities in cooperation and coordination with them. It is not our intent, however, to partner with them in joint funding efforts.

Fund-raising

Realizing that our community will consider a fund-raising, even by any of our constituencies as a HAC-sponsored and sanctioned endeavor, it is reaffirmed that the board must approve all fund-raising activities (exclusive of program fees). Written requests for approval will be required to be submitted to the board in advance. Submission criteria have been previously established and will be widely distributed. In reaffirming this requirement, it is the board's intent to support fund-raising efforts by offering coordination and guidance to optimize success and minimize conflicts and confusion. Board members are readily available to assist any group in preparing a request for funds.
It is the board's intent to reduce HAC's administration costs expressed as a percent of contributed income, and to maintain these costs at as low a level as is consistent with the value delivered to the community by our programs.
All giving opportunities will be sought, including but not limited to, living trusts, naming opportunities, and deferred giving.
To forestall further criticism resulting from earlier facility fund-raising projects, while at the same time to build credibility and financial support for future arts facilities, it was their commitment:
* To explicitly state the purpose for which the collected funds will be used (e.g., consultants, plans and drawings, real estate acquisition, building labor and materials, operation, etc.);
* To publicly disclose how the funds and the projects will be managed (e.g., business plans and fund-raising approval requests);
* To publicly report the financial status of facility programs regularly (e.g., via annual report; articles in the Healdsburg Tribune; occasional appearance before the city council);
* To establish and nurture the concept of a "winning team" by broadly communicating the value our programs confer upon the community and acknowledging the generosity of our enabling donors.