The Lismore City Council and theatre company NORPA are set to enter into a ‘cultural alliance’ that is being touted as the first of its kind in Australia.
The 10-year agreement would help ensure the viability of the City Hall as the region’s premier venue, enable NORPA to attract funding, and greatly enhance Lismore’s reputation as a centre for artistic vibrancy.
NORPA was invited to develop the cultural alliance with the council following an expressions of interest process that started in September last year.
During subsequent workshops and meetings, it was agreed that the cultural alliance should ‘foster a sustainable NORPA, maximise the utilisation of the City Hall and acknowledge that if both of these objectives were achieved, they would create social, cultural and economic benefits for Lismore residents’.
According to a report to be considered by councillors tomorrow, the key components of the agreement are that the alliance would be driven by a Joint steering committee consisting of NORPA board members, councillors and the respective general managers.
The agreement would be for 10 years from 1 July 2016.
The annual management fee would commence at $245,439.80, which is subject to annual consumer price index adjustments and a three yearly review.
According to staff comments, the 10-year agreement would help both organisations become financially stable, by reducing review costs for the council, and allowing NORPA to access long-term Australia Council funding.
The council meets tomorrow (Tuesday) at 6pm at the council chambers in Goonellabah to consider the alliance.
An alliance needs to be made with all the Arts, not just some of the Arts so the people’s approval can be won.
To bring and encourage all the Arts along on the trip of success then the smaller people need a hand up and a pat on the back to feel their glow in the sun. The Arts in finance need to be all in on the cooperative operations in cooperation so all go forward as a whole as Council then also brings along the Lismore society. That collective of people pay the rates in any case of success.
Otherwise, to choose some entities, the society itself becomes fragmented as the picking and choosing begins when the helpless are left behind on the cold first step of the backdoor and the strong gain momentum in gaining even more strength. The strong grow tall and the weak buckle at the knees from lack of finances even when they are busy bees looking everywhere for a bit of sweetness and honey.
Any Art area has to be holistic in character to carry the mighty load in going forward when there is no enough money.
A Council is elected by the people, all the people and from their ranks come their elected representatives to represent that all-encompassing group.