San Jose Creative Community: San Jose’s creative community is advocating for increased funding for the arts, urging city officials to implement a “percent for art policy” on new developments to support cultural projects. San Jose Arts Advocates, a coalition of art and culture leaders, is pushing for progress on this initiative, which was initially proposed by the city council in 2007 with the aim of implementing it by 2020. However, due to shifting priorities during the COVID-19 pandemic, the plan was put on hold.
Brendan Rawson, the executive director of San Jose Jazz and a founding member of San Jose Arts Advocates, emphasized the importance of reevaluating funding mechanisms for arts and culture. He pointed out the changes in the downtown economy, citing reduced business travel, fewer conventions, and decreased hotel room occupancy, which have affected the revenue from the hotel tax—a significant funding source for art projects in the city.
Currently, 40% of the hotel tax revenue contributes to the general fund, while the remaining half subsidizes the city’s Convention and Visitors Bureau, Team San Jose operations, and the Office of Cultural Affairs. With tourism slowly recovering, advocates stress the need for alternative funding tools to ensure the continuous growth of the arts scene without delays.
According to Rawson, the city’s five-year budget projection indicates a substantial drop in hotel tax revenue, from approximately $51.3 million in 2019 to about $27.5 million at the end of fiscal year 2023—a decline of over 46%. To address this funding gap, the coalition proposes a fee program that requires developers to pay 1% of a building permit valuation or make an in-lieu payment. The exact revenue this fee would generate remains uncertain, but advocates are hopeful that this initiative will bolster the city’s art and culture sector amid economic challenges. The discussion surrounding this proposal is set to continue during a city council arts funding study session scheduled for November 30.
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