Raising the curtain.

• Author: Beers, Heather
• Position: Focus

When Mormon pioneers washed ashore amid waves of dust in 1847, it didn't take long before Brigham Young ordered a theater to be erected. Like a hasty masthead, it symbolized the importance of arts and culture to Utah's fledgling community. Just how integral are arts and culture to Utah's modern economic landscape? And with Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr. now at the helm, what are his plans for shoring up support for the arts?

The Economic Impact of Arts

To prove they contribute more than a fleeting note, arts organizations are increasingly quantifying the quality of economic life they deliver. Locally, a 1999 study led by the Utah Arts Council and other cultural groups, indicated more than $40 million spent in payroll for cultural sector employees; an additional $11 million in related taxes; $10 million in non-personnel operating expenses for cultural organizations; $33 million on the purchase of goods and services by cultural organizations; and $30 million in new construction and renovations by cultural organizations.

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Utah's major cultural events generate millions in economic activity, such as the Sundance Film Festival, which totaled $42.7 million in 2005 for attendees' lodging, dining, transportation and discretionary spending.

Nationally, a 2002 Arts & Economic Prosperity study by the nonprofit organization, Americans for the Arts, revealed that the nonprofit arts industry generated some $134 billion in economic activity every year, including $24.4 billion in federal, state and local tax revenues.

Culture's Competitive Edge

Beyond the dollars, arts and culture have become a leverage point for economic development and executive recruiting, with culturally rich regions often winning out over other areas less inclined. Margaret Hunt, Utah Arts Council director (formerly with Utah Power and the executive committee of the Economic Development Corporation of Utah), says that she sees Utah's cultural strength as an economic advantage. "I spent a number of years in community and economic development. When businesses were choosing a location and all the economic factors were equal, the determining factor in where they chose to go had to do with quality of life, and that was tied to the arts and cultural infrastructure of a community," says Hunt.

With world-class ballet, symphony, opera, theater, modern dance and visual arts, Utah is said to rival larger metropolitan areas in cultural...