A survey of registered voters in Massachusetts Gateway Cities about their views on the arts produces some surprising – and encouraging results. So say John Schneider and Steve Koczela writing a report based on a recent poll for MASSINC. Link to full report.
Gateway Cities are generally cities trying to make a comeback, and therefore excludes Greater Boston but includes Brockton, Fall River, Fitchburg, Haverhill, Holyoke, Lawrence, Lowell, New Bedford, Pittsfield, Springfield, and Worcester. The poll was conducted October 13-16, 2011 among a representative sample of 500 registered voters in each locale, using conventional, registration based sampling procedures. In addition, an oversample of 100 voters from Lowell, New Bedford, and Pittsfield were called.
Pittsfield produced some of the most positive results of the cities surveyed. This has to be due to the momentum created by its emphasis on arts and culture as an economic engine. It has worked not only in Pittsfield, but also in other Berkshire cities like North Adams and Great Barrington to bring in new residents and businesses.
Quote from survey
Seventy percent of voters in Massachusetts’ eleven Gateway Cities consider community arts and culture events and activities either very important or extremely important and eighty percent support government funding for such events. About half (49 percent) feel general government funding for the arts should increase, and another 36 percent feel it should stay the same, according to a new poll by the MassINC Polling Group.
The poll was commissioned by MassINC as part of a newly-funded initiative to create a leadership network around the role of the arts in the economic revitalization of Gateway Cities, a strategy the National Endowment for the Arts calls “creative placemaking.” The survey, given to 600 registered voters among the eleven Gateway Cities, informs that effort by gauging voters’ perceptions of the arts and their impact on quality of life and economic development in these communities. Voter opinion will shape what is politically feasible at the local level, and could either spur leaders to take bold action in the creative placemaking arena or prevent them from doing so. The survey also captured their personal participation in a range of cultural and artistic pursuits, with voters reporting high levels of participation overall.
“It is clear from the report that Gateway City residents participate strongly in cultural activities and believe that arts and culture play a major role in improving their city’s image, its quality of life and its ability to attract additional investment,” said Greg Torres, President of MassINC and Publisher of CommonWealth magazine, who noted that the high levels of support may stem from successful examples of creative placemaking in a number of Gateway Cities such as Lowell, New Bedford and Pittsfield.
“As we have seen throughout the Gateway Cities, and certainly throughout the country, creative assets can spark a renaissance in cities struggling to revitalize their economies,” he said.
According to the survey, eight in ten Gateway City voters support government funding for arts events and activities, and 77 percent support funding for renovating art related buildings such as museums, galleries, and theaters. In each case, these figures are 15 percentage points higher than support among registered voters statewide.
The survey reported that participation in the arts is widespread among Gateway City residents. Only one in five reported no cultural pursuits in the previous year.
Gateway City residents associate creative placemaking with educational and economic development benefits. Sixty three percent said arts and culture can improve cities and towns by attracting new businesses; while 75 percent said arts and culture provide important educational opportunities for children.
Residents believe creative placemaking can improve the quality of life and boost their cities’ beleaguered image. While 62 percent say quality of life in their city is good, very good or excellent, just 42 percent think residents in other communities believe so. Sixty three percent believe holding cultural events in the community is a way to improve their cities’ image.
Gateway Cities are already seeing positive social impact from the arts and culture events and activities they currently support.
Three-quarters (75 percent) of Gateway City voters report awareness of a regularly scheduled cultural event in their community that draws out-of- town visitors. A variety of such events are already regular occurrences around the Gateway cities. The Lowell Folk Festival, the Pittsfield City Jazz Festival and its 3rd Thursdays program, AHA! Nights in New Bedford, and Springfield’s Mattoon Street Arts Festival are just a few examples. Among those who are aware, 72 percent say they attend these events. Combining the two questions shows that about half of Gateway City voters (54 percent) are both aware and attend these events when they occur.
The survey also provided some notable differences throughout these categories in terms of age and race. Non-white voters are more likely than white voters to say they strongly agree with the benefits of arts and culture events, though they are less likely to participate in most of the activities covered in the survey. Younger people participate in more cultural pursuits, but are less likely to be aware of cultural events taking place in their cities.
