City Arts Infrastructure and Access Initiative
#CreativeFreedomAct
OK Folks, Lets imagine developing an Arts Commons in your community.
Here's a compelling public pitch for the 0.25% sales tax proposal, aligned with the values of the Creative Freedom Act. It’s structured to work as a spoken presentation, public letter, Substack post, or flyer copy:
A Modest Proposal for a More Creative City
A Public Pitch for the Local Arts Commons Initiative
(Part of the Creative Freedom Act – Local Implementation)
What if every city had a place where artists could simply do their work?
Where the doors were open, the lights were on, and the space was free to use—not because someone wealthy donated it, but because the people of the city decided it mattered?
That’s what I’m proposing.
A small step with a big return: a 0.25% local sales tax—just one quarter of one percent—to fund a Local Arts Commons. That’s 25 cents on every $100 spent. For most households, we’re talking about $50 to $75 a year. For the community? It’s a long-term investment in creativity, culture, education, and pride.
Here’s what we do with it:
We take an empty or underused building in the city and bring it back to life.
We turn it into an open studio space for visual artists—painters, collage artists, printmakers, photographers, sculptors—offering free or low-cost workspaces.
We include a gallery and exhibition space, where artists can show their work, schools can take field trips, and the community can experience the creative pulse of its own people.
We set aside rooms for workshops and classes—collage, drawing, screen printing, poetry, zine-making, and more.
We house local arts organizations that are already doing the work but struggling with rent or visibility.
And we fund it all—utilities, maintenance, programming—with a small slice of shared civic will.
Why do this?
Because artists don’t just decorate cities. We shape how people imagine what’s possible.
We create what others build on. We reflect the soul of a place back to itself.
And right now, too many artists are priced out, pushed aside, or simply unseen.
We don’t need charity. We need infrastructure.
We need one building. A living cultural commons.
This isn’t just for artists. It’s for kids growing up without access to the arts.
It’s for neighbors who want to learn something new.
It’s for everyone who believes that creativity belongs in public life—not just behind paywalls or gallery glass.
The good news? We can do this.
All it takes is the collective decision to say: yes, this matters.
Yes, we believe that making a city more livable, more expressive, more human, is worth a quarter of a percent.
Let’s make that decision.
Let’s build the Local Arts Commons together.
You can create a general municipal bill proposal or civic initiative as part of the broader Creative Freedom Act framework. This kind of proposal would be structured similarly to a ballot initiative, city council ordinance, or arts funding bill. Here's a draft version designed for presentation to city officials, civic partners, or the public to advocate for allocating a small sales tax increase (0.25%) toward a community arts facility.
DRAFT PROPOSAL
City Arts Infrastructure and Access Initiative
(Part of the Creative Freedom Act – Local Implementation)
Title:
The Local Arts Commons Initiative
Purpose:
To empower the creative and cultural vitality of the city by dedicating a 0.25% increase in local sales tax revenue to establish and sustain a publicly accessible arts facility for working artists, arts organizations, and the broader community.
Proposal Summary:
We propose that the city enact a modest 0.25% sales tax increase (25 cents on every $100) to fund the acquisition, renovation, and maintenance of an unused or underutilized public or private building to serve as a Local Arts Commons. This initiative will:
Provide Visual Artists with Free or Subsidized Open Studio Spaces, giving priority to working artists who reside within city limits.
Include a Gallery/Exhibition Space for showcasing local artists, community collaborations, and curated visual arts programs.
Include an Education and Workshop Area for public classes, lectures, school partnerships, and skill-sharing events.
House Local Arts Organizations, offering them free or subsidized office space to coordinate programs and community outreach.
Cover Facility Utilities, Basic Maintenance, and Staffing, ensuring that the space remains open, safe, and well-functioning for public and artist use.
Estimated Budget Impact:
Acquisition/Lease of Building: [Insert estimate based on location]
Renovation and ADA Compliance: [Insert estimate]
Annual Operating Budget (utilities, staff, maintenance): [Insert annual estimate]
Funded by projected tax revenue from 0.25% sales tax increase, which will be placed in a dedicated and publicly audited City Cultural Infrastructure Fund.
Justification:
This initiative supports the local creative economy by removing barriers to space and visibility for artists. It creates long-term infrastructure for arts education, civic pride, and cultural tourism, while revitalizing unused urban assets. The Local Arts Commons becomes a living, evolving site of community creativity, accessible to all.
Benefits:
Supports economic equity and cultural visibility for artists.
Offers intergenerational and cross-community educational opportunities.
Revitalizes a dormant building and neighborhood.
Provides measurable public value through exhibitions, classes, and outreach.
Creates a civic landmark dedicated to the creative future of the city.
Oversight and Transparency:
A Local Arts Commons Oversight Committee composed of artists, city representatives, nonprofit leaders, and community members will be established to oversee funds, maintain transparency, and ensure the space serves the public interest.
Proposed Implementation Timeline:
Phase 1: Community Feedback & Planning (3 months)
Phase 2: Site Selection & Approval (3 months)
Phase 3: Build-Out & Staffing (6–9 months)
Phase 4: Public Launch & Programming Begins
Amount Raised by a 0.25% Sales Tax
The amount raised by a 0.25% (one-quarter of one percent) sales tax depends on the total annual taxable sales within a given city. Here's a basic formula and some averages to help you estimate for your own city:
Formula
Estimated Revenue = Total Taxable Sales × 0.0025
Examples by City Size
City Type Estimated Annual Taxable Sales Estimated Revenue
Small City (50,000 people) $500 million - $1.25 million/year
Mid-size City (150,000) $1.5 billion - $3.75 million/year
Large City (500,000+) $5–10 billion+ - $12.5–25 million/year
Specific Example: Santa Fe, NM
Santa Fe’s population: ~90,000
Annual taxable gross receipts: ~$3.5–4 billion (based on recent NM data)
0.25% tax would raise approximately $8.75–10 million/year
What That Could Fund
With ~$3–10 million annually, a city could:
Renovate or purchase a large arts facility
Offer dozens of subsidized artist studios
Pay utilities and staff
Fund rotating exhibitions, workshops, and public programming
Offer grants or commissions to local artists
In most cities, a 0.25% sales tax increase is generally seen as a modest and reasonable proposal, especially if it's clearly tied to visible, local benefits like arts, education, and community space.
Here’s why it tends to be acceptable:
Low Individual Impact
On a $100 purchase, it’s just 25 cents.
For an average household spending $30,000 annually on taxable goods, the increase is only about $75 per year.
High Community Return
When framed as:
Supporting local artists
Revitalizing a vacant or underused building
Offering free or low-cost community education
Creating public access to the arts
…people are far more likely to support it.
Successful Precedents
Many U.S. cities and counties have approved similar or higher tax increases for cultural, parks, and quality-of-life initiatives:
Denver, CO: 0.1% “Scientific and Cultural Facilities District” tax since 1989 — widely popular and renewed repeatedly.
Cincinnati, OH: 0.3% increase proposed for arts and public transit.
St. Louis, MO: 0.25% sales tax helped fund the Regional Arts Commission.
Key to Public Support: Messaging
To ensure public support, the proposal should:
Be transparent (where the money goes)
Be locally focused (benefits for our community)
Show equity and inclusion (artists from all walks of life)
Emphasize public access (free exhibitions, workshops, school programs)
Offer oversight and a sunset clause or review period
Summary
Yes, a 0.25% sales tax increase is generally reasonable, especially for a well-framed, arts-focused community project. Public buy-in will depend on how clearly the initiative demonstrates shared benefit, trustworthiness, and local impact.
Would you like help crafting a “public FAQ” or a flyer that frames it in these accessible terms for community support?