The Resort Municipality of Whistler (RMOW) has publicized its funding allotments through the Festivals, Events and Animation (FE&A) program, aimed at boosting tourism and supporting banner events.
Paid for through the B.C. government’s Municipal and Regional District Tax, a three-per-cent tax applied to short-term tourist accommodation in specific areas of B.C., the FE&A program’s total budget for Whistler this year is $3,030,000. That’s down slightly from last year’s $3,160,000 budget.
In 2023, the program will see 17 third-party events receive FE&A funds, totalling $756,000. Topping that list is Crankworx, Whistler’s beloved summer mountain bike festival, which will get $152,000, and the World Ski & Snowboard Festival (WSSF), with $110,000, the only events to crack the six-figure mark.*
Rounding out the list of events to receive funds are:
• Cornucopia: $90,000 for its signature food and drink festival, held in the fall, as well as a further $25,000 for its Nourish Spring Series;
• The Squamish Lil’wat Cultural Centre: $72,500 for its “Sister Poles” carving project;
• GranFondo Whistler: $60,000;
• Whistler Pride & Ski Festival: $47,500;
• Whistler Film Festival: $45,000;
• The Audain Art Museum: $30,000 for its exhibit, The Collectors’ Cosmos: The Meakins–McClaran Print Collection;
• Whistler Children’s Festival: $30,000;
• Whistler Half Marathon: $24,000;
• Whistler Village Beer Festival: $20,000;
• Whistler 50 Relay & Ultra: $15,000;
• Whistler Writers Festival: $15,000;
• Flag Stop Theatre & Arts Festival: $10,000;
• XFondo Gravel Bike Race, an all-roads bike race from the creators of GranFondo Whistler: $5,000;
• XTERRA Off-road Triathlon: $5,000.
The annual FE&A funds are especially a boon for smaller-scale local events, particularly after a few lean pandemic years when producers had to get creative to keep their programs on the schedule.
“It is so great to see so many locally run events being supported with this funding. I see Whistler’s mountain culture being shared in a greater way through many locally managed events that receive this support,” said Dave Clark, race director for the Whistler Half Marathon, in an email.
“Investments like these are a wonderful example of this evolution in tourism—they have a benefit to Whistler’s economic tourism model while reviving culture, language and traditions that were stolen from history and providing meaningful employment to Indigenous peoples,” said Heather Paul, executive director of the Squamish Lil’wat Cultural Centre, in an email.
Several local event organizers have recently completed surveys and interviews on ways to improve the FE&A process, said the Whistler Writers Festival’s artistic and executive director, Rebecca Wood Barrett, who added that she has appreciated the RMOW listening to feedback and adjusting the process over the years, which can be burdensome for small non-profits.
“Our organization has been extremely nimble over the last three years, and we greatly appreciate the RMOW’s efforts in listening to the industry challenges experienced by the live performance events community—and our recommendations for revitalizing the tourism sector from the event organizer’s perspective,” she said.
The RMOW has also committed $1,495,000 for its own original programming, which includes the popular Vancouver Symphony Orchestra performance at Olympic Plaza on June 29; Canada Day celebrations (which did not include a parade this year, to the dismay of many locals); as well as winter programming such as WinterSphere and New Year’s Eve.
The funding also applies to animation around the community, such as tobagganning at Olympic Plaza, support for the Fire & Ice Show, movie nights in the village, and other programming around the village and in local parks.
A further $779,000 will be invested in technical equipment required for Olympic Plaza stage programming, the municipality said, as well as event marketing and staffing and services associated with events coordination, programming, and operations.
This year’s FE&A program flew under the radar to some degree, with the events receiving funds only publicized on the RMOW website last month, after Pique began requesting information. Prior to 2022, municipal staff would typically present an overview of the program to elected officials and the public at a regular council meeting.
“Given FE&A’s work is always part of the RMOW budget approval process and overseen by the Festivals, Events and Amination Oversight Committee of Council—which includes a council representative alongside an RMOW rep, Tourism Whistler rep and a member at large from the public—a decision was made last year to not do the delegation to Council. This is revisited every year.”
The FE&A Oversight Committee’s meetings are closed to the public.
*An earlier version of this article incorrectly stated that Crankworx Events Inc., producer of Crankworx, was Whistler Blackcomb's in-house producer. In fact, while WB colloborates and supports the delivery of on-mountain events, CEI is an independent entity and no longer serves as WB's in-house producer.
