Bay Area Arts & Culture Alliance, local community partners to announce Spark GGB!
First-ever community-wide arts & culture assessment to develop, accelerate a shared vision for Greater Green Bay (UW-Green Bay is a partner)
What: Press conference announcing Spark GGB!, a first-of-its-kind community-wide arts and culture assessment of Greater Green Bay
When: Tuesday, April 5, 2022, from 11 a.m. to noon
Where: The Art Garage in Downtown Green Bay (1400 Cedar St, Green Bay, WI 54302)
Media notes: Media are invited to attend event and/or request morning live shots in the days leading up to it. Please contact Patrick Stumpf to coordinate interviews.
Green Bay, Wis. (March 29, 2022) — The Bay Area Arts & Culture Alliance (BAACA) and local community partners have announced Spark GGB!, a first-of-its-kind community-wide arts and culture assessment of Greater Green Bay designed to harness the area’s creative potential and develop and accelerate a shared vision for its future.
Partners involved in the assessment include the Greater Green Bay Chamber, Greater Green Bay Community Foundation, Northeast Wisconsin Technical College, University of Wisconsin-Green Bay, Discover Green Bay, City of Green Bay, and more.
“Spark GGB! will pour a strong foundation for the entire creative sector’s health, sustainability, and capacity to effect real change in our community,” said Kelli Strickland, executive and artistic director of the Weidner Center for the Performing Arts. “By engaging a multitude of voices in this dialogue we will be able to forge a creative plan for Greater Green Bay that is inclusive and powerful.”
Over the next eight months, Spark GGB! will closely examine existing activity in the arts sector, alongside the business, health, education, and public sectors through data and environmental analysis, community surveying, town halls, and over 50 individual interviews. The project’s co-chairs are Dennis Buehler, president and CEO of the Greater Green Bay Community Foundation, and Alex Zacarias, director of diversity & youth voice with the Boys and Girls Club of Greater Green Bay.
The assessment will ultimately produce findings, priorities, and provide basic architecture for a strategic planning process, allowing the community to:
- Develop a shared vision and vocabulary for the role of arts and culture;
- Identify current arts and culture assets, recommending how to strengthen and sustain the sector;
- Build on existing community plans to highlight where the creative sector can act as an accelerator, or a strategy to accelerate;
- Develop recommendations for a funding structure to support the future of the arts, including sustainability, community strengthening, economic development, arts education, and more.
“Youth engagement and participation in this initiative are critical as we plan for a sustainable future,” said Alex Zacarias, director of diversity & youth voice at the Boys and Girls Club of Greater Green Bay. “This initiative will help spark community cohesion and elevate our awareness to our diverse community’s rich tapestry of arts and artists leading to more cultural understanding and a sense of belonging.”
Kelly Armstrong, vice president of economic development for the Greater Green Bay Chamber, said: “The Chamber’s economic development strategic plan provided a pathway to a shared vision, and we are hopeful this process can have similar results for our creative community. We all believe having a thriving and supported creative culture is essential to retain and attract talent.”
Green Bay Mayor Eric Genrich said: “We’ve made a lot of progress in recent years elevating the importance of arts and culture in the community. The critical work we’re highlighting will take us to the next level by laying out a coherent strategy that puts the creators of arts and culture in the driver’s seat, setting a direction that local government, businesses, and philanthropic organizations can support and follow.”
More information on BAACA and Spark GGB! is available at https://greenbayart.org.
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About the Bay Area Arts and Culture Alliance (BAACA)
The Bay Area Arts and Culture Alliance (BAACA) was established in October of 2019. It is a group of arts and culture professionals dedicated to advocating for our sector in the region and responding to the needs of our larger creative economy. For more information, visit greenbayart.org.
Release by Patrick Stumpf
economic development communications manager
Greater Green Bay Chamber
651.600.2069 (c) | pstumpf@greatergbc.org
