Last year was a time of transition for Arts Whistler.
Most notably, the organization had to adjust after a two-year injection of $489,500 from a Canadian Heritage grant wrapped up at the end of 2017, said Michelle Ratcliffe, the new chair of Arts Whistler's board of directors at the organization's annual general meeting last Wednesday, May 22.
"We had the unique challenge of a year where the focus shifted to maintaining momentum," she said. "With the support of grants and fundraising, the momentum enabled Arts Whistler continue to produce Arts Scene three times a year, we found new reach with digital advertising, social channel marketing and ... managed to maintain Arts Whistler operations at an impressive height."
The annual report for 2018 showed plenty of areas of growth from 2017—one of the biggest being increased visitors to the Maury Young Arts Centre. The facility saw a spike of 80 per cent, welcoming 93,522 people in 2017 and 169,172 in 2018. That included 1,395 venue bookings with 589 of the bookings for arts, culture or heritage events.
"Arts Whistler continued to focus on local, cultural connections and collaborations, so in the spirit of collaboration, (it) transformed the arts centre into a central hub," Ratcliffe said. "The centre is now home to a variety of creative communities that are expansive."
The Gift Shop, meanwhile, saw a 27 per cent increase in the number of people selling their products. A total of 76 artists and artisans sold $22,000 worth of items, up nine per cent from 2017.
"We positioned ourselves through the Canadian Heritage grant ... to promote all arts and culture, not just Arts Whistler, to get more people walking through that door," Mo Douglas, executive director of Arts Whistler, said during the meeting.
Two of the organization's major events of the year also saw growth in attendance. The Holiday Market grew by 32 per cent to finally reach 10,000 visitors over the weekend, while the Whistler Children's Festival welcomed over 7,000 attendees, up slightly from 6,237 people in 2017.
"We had record-setting numbers at a few key events that have been around for a long time, so that was exciting for us," Douglas added. "We surpassed the 10,000-person mark at the Holiday Market last year. Our last years have been 7,000 to 7,500 ... The resort is realizing we protect the resort on American Thanksgiving. If there's not great snow, that show is the best thing in town."
The organization also "continues to be in good financial shape," said David Wilcox, treasurer with the board of directors.
Revenue was down for 2018, which was anticipated due to the end of the Canadian Heritage grant. That added up to $1,597,406 in 2018 compared to $1,936,411 in 2017.
Expenses, meanwhile, also dropped from $754,479 in 2017 to $575,001 in 2018.
"Looking ahead to 2019, we've approved a balanced budget for the year," Wilcox said. "So far, we're tracking in line with that."
Before the end of the meeting, board member Shelagh Thiessen introduced the new faces on the board. Earning spots by acclimation were Jeff Murl (who ran for a council seat in the last municipal election), Jessie Morden, and Claire Ruddy (who you might recognize as executive director of AWARE).
They join existing board members Wilcox (moving into year three of six), Suzanne Johnston (heading into her fifth year), and Brianna Beacom (in year three). Ratcliffe took over the board chair position from Heather Paul in April.
Outgoing directors include former mayor Nancy Wilhelm-Morden and Elizabeth Tracy.
The appointed members are Councillor Cathy Jewett, who oversees the municipality's Arts, Natural History, Traditions and Heritage portfolio; Kim Stanger from the Squamish Lil'wat Cultural Centre; and the Resort Municipality of Whistler's Manager of Cultural Planning and Development, John Rae.
"I sit alongside a diverse group of creative leaders, all passionate about arts in our community," Ratcliffe said, "especially because of the opportunities to really engage everyone, whether they're here for a day or whether they're rooted for life."
