Seven community events will receive funding from the City of Airdrie through the Community Investment Fund (CIF) after City council approved a request from Community Services at their meeting on Nov. 3.
Council unanimously approved spending $42,420 to provide funding to four large scale events and three small scale events.
This is the second year organizations could apply for and receive funding through the CIF program, according to Social Planner with the City Robbie White.
“Last year we got four applications and those were all large scale. This year we got seven. It’s the same four large- scale (events) and then three small-scale,” he explained.
Receiving funding again in 2015 will be the Airdrie Food Bank for the Empty Bowls Arts Festival ($7,500), the Airdrie Festival of Lights ($11,100), the Airdrie Performing Arts Society for the Rotary Festival of Performing Arts ($5,220), and the Creative Airdrie Society ($11,100) for Culture in the Creek.
New recipients of funding are the Boys and Girls Club of Airdrie for AIRscares ($2,850), Community Links for Linking the Community ($1,350) and SLAM for the Mayor’s Night of the Arts ($3,300).
White said the organizations were notified they would be receiving the funds on Nov. 4.
White said the CIF program was developed in 2014 as a way of dealing with the number of organizations approaching the City for funding.
“We thought it would be prudent to put a little bit of structure and accountability around that funding,” White said.
“With council approval, we developed our CIF policy. There isn’t necessarily a set amount each year,” he added.
“Basically, we get all the applications in each year and they go through the voting process through the Community Services Advisory Board (CSAB), and that produces the dollar amount (for each organization).”
White said the CSAB had originally recommended the Airdrie Food Bank receive $5,850 for the Empty Bowls Arts Festival. However, at the Nov. 3 City council meeting, Mayor Peter Brown and Deputy Mayor Allan Hunter asked the rest of council to consider increasing that amount to $7,500 in light of the food bank having moved to a larger building and serving more clients.
“When council is going through the budgeting process and they decide they need to slim it down, this is one area that could be targeted, so it won’t be finalized until the whole budget is approved,” he said.
