Attachment 3
Jazz City Festival Society
Jazz City International Music Festival
Jazz City Festival Society has produced Edmonton’s Jazz City Festival for the past 25 years. An application to support the production of the 26th festival was received by the Edmonton Arts Council on November 5, 2004.
In reviewing this application, the Festival Peer Jury considered the following:
Jazz City Festival Society has a substantial debt brought about by successive deficits on annual operations. Audited 2004 financial statements for Jazz City Society were not provided with the 2005 application form. The unaudited financial statements provided indicate a long term liability (a loan from the former artistic director) in the amount of $307,000. The unaudited financial statements also indicate that $123,675.50 is receivable from Calgary Jazz Society. Additionally, a list of creditors supplied by the auditors indicates payables in excess of $188,000. In the opinion of the jury, festival programming is unclear. The jury expressed serious concerns regarding the financial and organizational stability of the organization. On February 9, 2005, the Board of the Edmonton Arts Council approved the following recommendations of the 2005 Festival Peer Jury:
The jury recognizes the merit of the festival and wishes to support the 2005 festival under the following conditions:
1. Receipt of 2004 audited financial statements
2. Receipt of financial statements to date
3. Specifics of the terms of the loan from former artistic director.
4. Specifics of the terms of the receivable from Calgary Jazz Society
5. Confirmation that creditors have accepted debt repayment plan
6. Detailed description of 2005 programming and festival budget
The above conditions must be met by 4:30 p.m. on February 28, 2005. In order to determine that the conditions are met satisfactorily, the jury will reconvene to review the items listed above. Upon review, the jury must be satisfied that the Jazz City Festival Society can and will produce 2005 Jazz City Festival, and that funds allocated through the 2005 Festival Operating Program will be utilized to support the 2005 festival and not to pay existing past debts.
The jury recognizes the importance of a jazz festival to Edmonton. Therefore, in the event that the jury determines that the conditions have not been met satisfactorily by the Jazz City Festival Society, the jury recommends that the unallocated $75,000 be made available, through an application process, to other eligible organizations for the production of a 2005 jazz festival. In the opinion of the jury, the scope of the 2005 festival will not equal previous years and the jury recommends support at a lower level than in 2004. Conditionalgrant recommendation is $75,000.
On Tuesday March 8, the 2005 Festival Peer Jury met to review and consider information provided by the Jazz City Festival Society intended to satisfy the conditions placed on the 2005 Community Investment Festival Operating grant recommendation. In the opinion of the jury, the conditions were not met satisfactorily. Based on the information received on February 28, 2005, the Jury is not satisfied at this time that the Jazz City Festival Society has the capacity to produce the 2005 Jazz City Festival as described in the application received November 5, 2004.
The Board of the Edmonton Arts Council met on Wednesday, March 9 and subsequently issued the following notice:
The 2005 Edmonton Arts Council Community Investment Festival Operating Program Jury has met and made funding recommendations to the Board of the Edmonton Arts Council. In particular:
- No recommendation is made to support an organization for the production of a 2005 jazz festival, and
- Funding in the amount of $75,000 remains unallocated.
The Edmonton Arts Council recognizes the importance of a jazz festival to Edmonton. At its meeting of March 9, 2005 the EAC Board passed the following motion:
“...that the unallocated $75,000 be made available, through an application process, to eligible organizations for the production of a jazz festival in 2005”
Therefore, the Edmonton Arts Council will accept applications to the Special Festival Community Investment Program for the production of a jazz festival in Edmonton in 2005.
The deadline for submission of this application is April 12, 2005. Incomplete or late applications will not be accepted or considered. Applications must be delivered to the office of the Edmonton Arts Council #808, 10310 Jasper Avenue, Edmonton, AB T5J 2W4
Purpose: The purpose of the Special Festival Community Investment Grant is to provide limited assistance, subject to availability of funds, to resident non-profit organizations for the purpose of:- the production of a jazz festival in Edmonton in 2005
Eligibility:
- The applicant must be an organization that has been registered as a non-profit society in the Province of Alberta for at least one year.
Level of Support:
- Total funds available in the Special Festival Community Investment Program in 2005 will be $75,000.
- Please note that in accordance with City of Edmonton Policy C-211E, support through the City of Edmonton Community Investment Program may be provided to a maximum of 25% of the applicant’s operating budget.