BeautifulCity.ca: billboard fees to fund local artist programs

Anyone involved in the arts in Toronto should definitely take a look closely at this initiative as a means of creating significant support to local arts programming, based on a billboard fee toward the corporations who own these properties and utilize them to make major revenues.

If passed by Toronto City Council this program could create anywhere between 13-50 million dollars in funding for arts based initiatives across the GTA.

Here’s a summary of what the Beautiful City campaign is all about:

The Beautiful City Billboard Fee (BCBF) would see a charge paid by billboard advertisers through an annual license fee. Revenue would be dedicated to bylaw enforcement and art in the public sphere. A priority would be placed on funding marginalized communities and youth art and distributed through arms-length or peer jury processes. Specific objectives of the BCBF include:

• Urban beautification & employment for artists
• More funding for tracking & policing billboard advertisers
• Helping move Toronto towards a pedestrian focused aesthetic
• Promoting community ownership of public spaces
• Diversifying access to public communication

Please visit www.beautifulcity.ca for more information and to sign the online petition.

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