Erie County, like most everything else in New York State, is currently in a huge budget crisis. To keep taxpayers' enormously high rates from rising even further, County Executive Chris Collins is trying to limit government spending.
In a drastic measure, Collins has decided to cut all but 10 of Erie County's various cultural organizations from next year's county budget.
Collins says he is keeping the top 10 – which includes the Buffalo Zoo, the Buffalo Museum of Science, the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra, the Albright-Knox Art Gallery, and the Historical Society – because they each bring in outsiders and tourists from around the country, while the others do not.
Collins' logic is suspect; it looks like he may care more about tourists and outsiders than he does about the people who live in Erie County year-round.
Among the institutions that will not receive any money from the county next year (money that they usually do receive) are Shakespeare in Delaware Park, the African American Cultural Center, the Irish Classical Theater, and the Music is Art Festival. In fact, as a result of Collins' cuts, no local theaters will receive county funding in a city that is renowned for its theater culture.
The lack of funding for these organizations next year may lead some of them to charge admission for events that have been free in the past or cease operations altogether.
For example, Shakespeare in Delaware Park received $81,000 from the county in 2010. That accounted for one-quarter of its budget, and its prospects for next year are looking shaky at best. The event has been held daily during the summer months for over 35 years, and it has always been free.
Buffalo's arts and entertainment scene is one of the few things that thrives in the city. By taking away these low-cost services, Collins deals yet another blow to those who might not be able to afford more expensive venues as a result of the tough economic times.
Collins' move does make economic sense. When there is a financial crisis, the first things that always get eliminated are arts, entertainment and recreation, which are non-essential to survival.
However, the county should not have cut all of these organizations outright, in effect crippling them. More modest cuts could have been made, and some cuts could have also been made to the top 10 institutions, most of which already charge admission and have many other ways of acquiring funds.
For example, the Buffalo Zoo is being granted almost $1.5 million. A fraction of that money would be enough to fund several other smaller, albeit important, organizations.
Collins already has a bad reputation for getting his way in county government whether anyone else likes it or not. He is sued often and does not shy away from taking his opponents to the courtroom, but he loses often.
Whether his latest measure ends up in court or not, it is sure to anger many, especially patrons of the arts community.
