Jamie Howell
    Staff Writer

On Feb. 2, the Raleigh City Council passed the Raleigh Arts Plan after years of work to develop the project.

According to the city of Raleigh website, work on the project began in July 2014, and the plan is meant to promote the arts and culture in the Raleigh community.

According to the City of Raleigh website, in the beginning of October 2015, the plan became available for public review so that the community of Raleigh could approve it through portals such as social media and surveys.

The video on the Raleigh city website shows citizens talking about their favorite arts programs in Raleigh such as the contemporary art museum. They also discussed things, such as space for theater and music performances, the Renaissance fair and more activities to get kids involved in the arts, that they would like to see the Arts Plan bring to Raleigh.

According to the City of Raleigh website, “The goals of the community engagement process were to create the conditions for successful development and implementation of the Raleigh Arts Plan, to encourage a diverse array of public participation and to provide public access to planning information and ongoing communications.”

In order to get the plan worked out in detail, the city website states that 34 committee members were appointed to work on the project by advising and overseeing its development.

By Dec. 8,  the Raleigh Arts Commission had voted to recommend their plan to city council for approval.

In Raleigh public record regarding presentation of the Arts Plan to city council, Jerry Bolas of the city’s Parks, Recreation and Cultural Resources Department referenced five goals they had when planning first began on the project: “nurturing creativity and opportunities to live creatively throughout the city, growing participation in the arts citywide, encouraging support for the arts and for arts organizations and amplifying public and private investment in the arts.”

Jerry Allen, one of the planners involved in the Arts Plan, was also present and, according to the Raleigh public record, he expanded this into eight goals: “participation by anyone who wants to in the arts, youth involvement, improved inclusion and equity efforts, the support of artists and cultural organizations, making arts and creative districts, create nodes of art, a public art master plan, the long-term goal of a new performing arts venue, the consolidation of arts programs and a sustainable source of funding, which would be created through an Arts and Culture Foundation.”

According to an article published in the Oxford Journal, the arts are an essential basis for creating and developing an individual identity for a community, especially in a globalized world.

The Raleigh city website states that the development of Arts programs in the city will help to increase tourism, improve education, and advance the economy.

Of course, it is not just the city of Raleigh that has and will benefit from a dedication to the arts. The Raleigh city website notes that many cities have used arts plans to develop their local communities.

The arts are also valued nationally as a means to connect and explore a community. The President’s Committee on the Arts and the Humanities website quotes First Lady Michelle Obama as saying, “The arts and humanities define who we are as a people.” 

“That is their power — to remind us of what we each have to offer, and what we all have in common.  To help us understand our history and imagine our future.  To give us hope in the moments of struggle and to bring us together when nothing else will,” Michelle Obama said.