Miami Public Library located in the Arts & Cultural District

The Miami Arts and Humanities Council recently received an Oklahoma Arts Council grant to participate in their Cultural District Initiative.  The grant is a maximum of $25,000 to be distributed over the course of up to 5 years.  It’s a great place to start and also can be leveraged to attract more grants. The following list of questions and answers explains a little more about this initiative:

What is a Cultural District?

• A Cultural District is a mixed-use, pedestrian friendly area of a community in which a high concentration of arts and cultural facilities and events serve as the anchor of attraction.
• It reflects the community’s unique environment and history, showcases the region’s artists and cultural traditions, and attracts visitors.
• It creates and supports arts events, develops collaborations with the arts, local governments, and businesses within the community, and promotes economic growth within the District.
• It is one of those things that makes you fall in love with your community.

Where is our Cultural District located?

It is basically a rectangle that encompasses Main Street and A Streets on either side, from just to the north of the library to just half a block south of Venue 29.

What are the goals of our Cultural District?

• Create a more vital and animated downtown and increase economic activity by supporting arts and cultural venues and events that will attract residents and visitors to Miami’s Cultural District.
• Increase opportunities for enhancing arts education by providing more artist-in-residence programs and art workshops for young artists with a focus on using local and regional artists.
• Develop and communicate an authentic and compelling identity of Miami’s Cultural District centered on arts and cultural assets, including our unique Native American heritage and the Coleman Theatre.
• Increase Miami’s capacity to develop and expand arts and cultural programs, events and creative spaces that will sustain the Cultural District.
• Identify a dedicated funding stream that will provide stable, long-term resources to support collaborative arts venues and events, operations, and marketing for Miami’s Cultural District.

How can I get involved?

• Search Facebook for Miami, OK Cultural District Initiative and choose to Like and Follow them.  This will not only let you know about events in the District, but it will also have additional information about ways to get involved.
• Attend the events.  The vibrancy of the District will depend on people who show up and participate in what is going on.
• Offer to help plan, work, or sponsor events in the District.  Planning is still being done and your input will be welcome.  In addition, it takes a lot of people to pull off a big event and help is always needed.  Sponsoring an event is a great way to help make an event happen and to get recognition for your contribution as well.

The Miami Public Library is proud to be a part of the Cultural District.  We will participate in many ways such as hosting art shows, providing art workshops and writers’ groups, and helping to plan and produce other events within the District.  We hope to see you there!

The Oklahoma Arts Council is the official state agency for the support and development of the arts. The agency’s mission is to lead in the advancement of Oklahoma’s thriving arts industry. The Oklahoma Arts Council provides approximately 500 grants to almost 250 organizations in communities statewide each year, organizes professional development opportunities for the state’s arts and cultural industry, and manages hundreds of works of art in the public spaces of the state Capitol. Additional information is available at arts.ok.gov.