.City Council renewed a six-figure contract to the Union County Performing Arts Center (UCPAC) to provide assistance with some events throughout the year.

Become a Patron!
If you find this post valuable, consider making a contribution via PayPal or Buy Me a Coffee – or support local news you don’t get anywhere else all year round by becoming a monthly Patron.

The governing body, during its March 11 regular meeting, approved a resolution (AR-90-24) awarding a $183,750 contract to the Union County Performing Arts Center (UCPAC) for “technical and programming assistance on an as-needed basis for certain arts-based events offered by the city.”

The award is some $50,000, almost 22 percent, less than the previous contract, which had increased the previous two years. The contract amount has fluctuated in the last few years, from $235,000 last year, which was up from $220,000 in 2022. Those totals are up significantly from the annual $80,000 contracts awarded annually between 2015 and 2017.

Last year’s $235,000 contract included a list of 43 events with which UCPAC would assist, including things like the mayor’s State of the City address and downtown concerts, among others. UCPAC submits itemized invoices to the city each month, according to the contract. For example, last year UCPAC invoiced for 50 percent of the total production costs and 50 percent of total talent fees of the Mayor’s Summer Concert Series, or about $70,000, and 50 percent of the total cost of four music events, roughly $14,000. This most recent contract for 2024 has been requested via the Open Public Records Act (OPRA) (this post will be updated once it’s received).

3/28 UPDATE: The city responded to a follow-up inquiry that the request requires an extension to April 27. I’ll keep you posted.

4/6 UPDATE: The city responded by sending a copy of the 18-page contract (available here), including background materials, on April 5 but “no responsive records were identified” when it came to invoices for the second half of 2023.

For comparison, the $183,750 contract with the city would represent about 8 percent of the $2.35 million revenue reported by UCPAC in the fiscal year ending June 2022. The 2022 tax form was filed with the IRS in October 2022 but the most recent year, 2023, is not yet available via Guidestar.org or ProPublica’s Nonprofit Explorer.

Become a Patron!
If you find this post valuable, consider making a contribution via PayPal or Buy Me a Coffee – or support local news you don’t get anywhere else all year round by becoming a monthly Patron.