Leesburg Art Commission Accepting Grant Requests

Local arts organizations are encouraged to apply to the Leesburg Public Art Commission invites local arts for funding.

The Town of Leesburg plans to apply for $5,000 in state funding from the Virginia Commission for the Arts’ Local Government Challenge Grant Program, and match it with $5,000 in local funds for a total of $10,000 to be distributed to independent arts organizations that support arts activities within the town.

Organizations wishing to apply should submit a request letter to the Leesburg Public Art Commission outlining the amount requested, the arts activity that the funding will support and who it will serve, along with a description of the organizations. Qualifying arts activities must take place in the Town of Leesburg during FY 2014 (July 1, 2013 through June 30, 2014).

Eligible applicants must be organizations whose primary purpose is the arts – including production, presentation or support of dance, literary arts, media arts, music, theater, or visual or related arts – that are incorporated in Virginia, and have their headquarters and home seasons, or activities equivalent to a home season, in the state. Funding cannot be provided for payment to performers for specific performances.

The commission must received requests by 5 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 19. Send request letters to: Public Art Commission, Attn: Local Government Challenge Grant, 25 West Market Street, Leesburg, VA 20176, email them to bfields@leesburgva.gov or drop them off at Town Hall, 25 West Market Street. 

“In the past, the town has distributed this funding to the Bluemont Concert Series,” art commission chair Pamela Butler said in a press release. “However, with the establishment of the Public Art Commission and the explosion of new arts organizations in town, we decided to create a competitive process, to offer other organizations an opportunity to receive funding.”

Butler said the commission could not be sure how the money would be distributed or to how many organizations until the requests arrived.

“We could divide up the money in any of a number of ways,” she explained. “Five organizations could receive $2,000 each, for example. Or one organization could receive $5,000 and five organizations $1,000 each. We want to do the most good we can with this limited amount of money.”

The Public Art Commission will review the funding requests during the March 4 meeting and make a recommendation to the Leesburg Town Council, which is expected to take up the item March 12. The Town Council will make the final determination, dependent on receipt of the matching state funds. The deadline for the Town to apply for the Local Government Challenge Grant is April 1.

For more information about the Virginia Commission for the Arts’ Local Government Challenge Grant program, visit www.arts.virginia.gov/grants_local.html