\u201cYes for the Arts 2026,\u201d a proposed ballot measure for the November 2026 election, seeks to provide funding to select arts organizations in the city of Berkeley. However, the measure must garner enough signatures before it can be placed on the November ballot.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The measure would impose a parcel tax of $0.07 per square foot on properties and is expected to generate more than $5.5 million annually, according to the Yes for Berkeley Arts website. The funds would go toward \u201cnonprofit performing arts organizations, including theaters, music and dance venues, concerts, and festivals,\u201d according to the website.<\/p>\n
\u201cBerkeley has always been a place that has been defined by the arts, and there\u2019s just a lot of concern in the community that if we don\u2019t act, that legacy could go away,\u201d said Noah Finneburgh, a campaign consultant. \u201cWe want to make sure that folks have a chance to vote on this to really reaffirm that Berkeley is a place that\u2019s defined by the arts and proud of its art tradition.\u201d<\/p>\n
Patrick Dooley, artistic director of Shotgun Players, said qualifying arts organizations in Berkeley would have the opportunity to apply for a grant from the measure\u2019s fund.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The grant would cover 8% to 12% of the organization\u2019s annual operating budget, according to Dooley. He specified that only organizations with offices and programming in the city of Berkeley would be eligible for the grant.<\/p>\n
Shotgun Players is a group among a coalition of Berkeley arts organizations working to pass the measure. The coalition\u2019s organizations also include Berkeley Repertory Theatre, The UC Theatre, Berkeley Playhouse, The Freight and Berkeley Symphony.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a tax, but there will be a net gain in property values for folks, because it keeps the city a vibrant place to live, and it\u2019s also great for all the surrounding businesses,\u201d Dooley said.<\/p>\n
A condition of the grant is that organizations must \u201cshow that they are making specific accommodations for Berkeley residents,\u201d such as discounted tickets, classes or available space for rehearsal, according to Dooley.<\/p>\n
The measure additionally describes threats that Berkeley\u2019s arts organizations are facing, including \u201crebuilding audience attendance post-pandemic\u201d and \u201crising labor and production costs.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBerkeley\u2019s arts legacy is under threat right now from a range of post-pandemic challenges,\u201d said Igor\u00a0Tregub, the city\u2019s council member for Downtown Berkeley \u201cWe have had some very unfortunate closures already of some Berkeley theaters, including Aurora Theater \u2026 hopefully this arts measure would actually help theaters like those reopen.\u201d<\/p>\n
Both Tregub and Dooley cited rescinded federal grants as a concern for arts organizations.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Tregub noted that, according to city staff, $40,000 of funds from the National Endowment for the Arts, or NEA, has been withdrawn.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe time is now to get this measure on the ballot and pass it,\u201d Tregub said. \u201cThe arts are such a vital part of what makes Berkeley such a unique, beloved community. We cannot afford to wait another election cycle to make sure that these cultural institutions are protected at a time when arts and culture are under attack across the nation.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"\u201cYes for the Arts 2026,\u201d a proposed ballot measure for the November 2026 election, seeks to provide funding…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":49770,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[34],"tags":[32184,27336,32222,14328,32223,32218,143,145,144,32219,32220,28261,32221,32217,32216],"class_list":["post-49769","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-oakland","tag-berkeley-playhouse","tag-berkeley-repertory-theatre","tag-berkeley-symphony","tag-igor-tregub","tag-national-endowment-for-the-arts","tag-noah-finneburgh","tag-oakland","tag-oakland-headlines","tag-oakland-news","tag-patrick-dooley","tag-shotgun-players","tag-the-freight","tag-the-uc-theatre","tag-yes-for-berkeley-arts","tag-yes-for-the-arts-2026"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/49769","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=49769"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/49769\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/49770"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=49769"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=49769"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=49769"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}