The arts mean big money, big business in SWFL, new study shows

Charles Runnells
The News-Press

Street artist Daniel Israel performs Friday at Music Walk in downtown Fort Myers.

Lydia Black said it before and now she’s saying it again: The arts are big business in Lee County and the rest of Southwest Florida.

And she has the numbers to prove it, too. Only now, those numbers are bigger than they were five years ago, according to a national arts study released this weekend.

Nonprofit arts and culture groups generated a whopping $140 million in Lee County in 2015. That’s more than double what they generated in 2010, when Southwest Florida was still reeling from the national economic downturn.

Those groups provided jobs for 3,875 people and pumped $19 million into the coffers of local and state governments. That’s up dramatically from the 2,000 people employed in 2010 and the $9 million that went to local and state governments.

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It’s not surprising that the economy has improved so much, said Black, executive director for the Alliance for the Arts in Fort Myers. After all, 2010 was a terrible year for Southwest Florida and the rest of the country, too, and things have gotten much better since then.

“It was arguably the worst economic year in decades,” Black said about 2010, when she and the Alliance participated in the last Arts & Economic Prosperity study. “So there was some expectation of growth with this study.”

Black figured the 2015 numbers would be bigger — just not quite that big. And other local arts leaders feel the same way.

“That’s surprising!” said Michael Moran, executive director of Cultural Park Theatre in Cape Coral, after hearing the new numbers. “It makes me happy. But I knew things would pick up rapidly once the economy came back.”

Collier County also took part in the study, but the full report wasn’t available from the Americans for the Arts or the United Arts Council of Collier County, which worked with Americans for the Arts on the project. Laura Burns, executive director of the United Arts Council, said she plans a public presentation of the report on July 20.

Burns is attending an Americans for the Arts conference in San Francisco this week to better understand the data, and she said she hasn’t had a chance to “drill deep” into Collier numbers. But what she has seen reinforces the report's motto: "The arts mean business."

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“On the average, people were spending $32 per event when they went to an event (in Collier County), and that doesn’t include the price of admission,” she said. “Revenue from the arts in Collier County was $3.5 million to local governments, and $7.5 million to state governments.

"This says to us the more we keep our key partnerships with businesses and governments, the stronger everyone is.”

The new statistics for Lee and Collier counties will help arts groups secure grants and tax dollars, Black said, and they might help prevent more budget cuts from state, local and federal governments — or even encourage more spending. Arts groups can prove that government dollars don't go to waste: They actually generate more revenue in the long run.

That’s especially important during a time when arts organizations are facing cutbacks in arts spending at the local, state and federal levels, Black said.

“Now is a critical time for the arts community,” Black said. “Both the federal administration and our state administration … see the cultural benefits of the arts, but they don’t necessarily think about the economic value.”

Americans for the Arts is a national organization that supports the arts and arts education. Its study tracked the economic impact of nonprofit arts and culture groups in 341 U.S. regions.

Nationally, the nonprofit arts industry generates $135 billion every year, according to the national group's website. That supports 4.1 million jobs and generates $22 billion in government revenue. The team behind the new study was attending the San Francisco conference this week and was unavailable for comment.

Black called the study a “flashlight” that helps illuminate the arts and what they do for the community. It’s not just singing and dancing, painting and sculpting.

Ross Clark of the band, Rutland, performs in the rain Friday at Music Walk in downtown Fort Myers.

“They really do drive business and create a work force,” Black said. “We are seeing a big economic impact.”

To compile the statistics, the Alliance for the Arts worked with 41 theaters, museums, art galleries, orchestras and other local arts groups in Lee County. Those groups include big players such as Florida Repertory Theatre, Bob Rauschenberg Gallery, ArtFest Fort Myers and the Southwest Florida Symphony, but also smaller groups such as Ghostbird Theatre Company and the Acoustic Music Society of Southwest Florida.

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The study doesn't include for-profit businesses and venues such as Germain Arena or Barbara B. Mann Performing Arts Hall. So the money generated by the arts in Lee County is even higher, Black said.

The Lee County study's findings include these eye-opening numbers:

— People spent an average of $31.53 every time they visited a theater, art gallery, museum or other nonprofit arts group, including the cost of snacks, restaurant meals, transportation, hotel stays and clothing (such as a tuxedo or ball gown). That doesn't include tickets and admission, which the study lumped with the arts groups' general operating expenses.

— Non-residents spent more than locals did, though. Lee County residents spent an average of $26, while non-residents spent $47. 

— More than 3,000 volunteers donated an average of 60 hours of work to arts groups in 2015. Their overall volunteer time was valued at an estimated $4.3 million.

— Non-profit arts groups in Fort Myers — a hotbed of arts and culture with art galleries, two theaters and other attractions — generated $50 million and employed 1,389 people in full-time jobs (or the equivalent). This year’s Lee County report included a separate breakout on Fort Myers.

Moran said he’s seen a growth in the arts at Cultural Park Theater, too, where audiences are bigger than ever and many shows sell out. And he’s noticed bigger audiences at other theaters, too.

That audience demand has led to more plays and musicals being produced at Cultural Park Theater and elsewhere in Lee County — not to mention concerts and other arts events.

The improving economy wasn’t the only reason for the boost in audiences, spending and overall economic impact, Black said. She also credits new venues such as the Center for Performing Arts Bonita Springs and Sidney & Berne Davis Art Center in downtown Fort Myers, plus more cooperation among various arts groups, including popular collaborative events such as Cape Coral’s Bike Night and downtown Fort Myers’ Art Walk and spin-off event Music Walk.

“Art Walk was just getting started in 2010,” Black said.

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The Arts & Economic Prosperity Report is the fifth conducted by Americans for the Arts, which calls it the most comprehensive study of its kind. 

Like many economic-impact studies, this one tracked more than just income and spending from each organization. Money generated at theaters, galleries and performing arts halls eventually trickles down to other parts of the community. Landscapers hired by the Alliance, for example, will also spend money at hardware stores for landscaping equipment, gas stations for fuel and restaurants for food. Plus they'll use the money for rent and other personal expenses.

Black hopes these numbers get government leaders to think twice before making budget cuts in grants and other funding.

 “[I hope that] we’re not only seen as an expense line, but that there’s an income line,” she says. “The biggest thing is to have the community recognize the cultural value, but also recognize the economic impact.

“And we still have a long way to go to convince people of that.”

Harriet Heithaus of The Naples Daily News contributed to this article.

Connect with this reporter: Charles Runnells (News-Press) (Facebook), @charlesrunnells (Twitter), @crunnells1 (Instagram)

Lee County by the numbers for 2015:

$140 million: Amount generated by arts and culture organizations, compared to $68 million in 2010.

$50 million: Amount generated by Fort Myers arts and culture organizations

3.4 million: Number of attendees at nonprofit arts and culture events (2.6 million of those attendees live in Lee County)

$31.53: Average amount spent by attendees of arts or cultural events, not including admission. Non-residents spent more than locals, though: An average of $47 compared to $26.

3,061: Total number of volunteers at arts and culture non-profits

73 percent: Number of non-residents who, in a survey, said their main reason for visiting Lee County was to attend an arts or cultural event.

3,875: Full-time jobs (or the equivalent) supported by non-profit arts organizations, compared to only 2,000 in 2010.

184,129: Number of hours worked by Lee County’s 3,061 volunteers in nonprofit arts and culture groups (valued at $4.3 million)