Duke University



The Arts’ Role in the Economy of DurhamSiyu ZhengArt has been an integral part of society since the beginnings of civilization, contributing to the culture and economy of communities and improving the quality of life. The art industry’s underlying motive is atypical of modern industries: creating art for the sake of creating art. The arts’ ability to enrich lives, unite people across diverse backgrounds, and help children develop cognitive ability and discipline are just wonderful positive externalities from creating art for the sheer enjoyment. Economically, the arts are also valuable, directly providing a source of jobs and growth in the local economy. The presence of the arts in a community also increases its attractiveness as a place to work, live, and play, bringing in new residents, businesses, and tourists, which makes the arts an undoubted key factor in the economic growth and development of a city. In the 1970’s, cities across America experienced a shift in their economic paradigm, from a manufacturing based economy towards more of a service oriented economy. As manufacturing jobs left the city and middle class residents left for the suburbs, downtown areas became disproportionately occupied by lower class residents and were no longer desirable places to live. Cities were faced with the problem of revitalizing their centers and many of these faltering economies were bolstered or revitalized by the introduction of the arts. Whether introduced through careful and wise urban planning or through organic inflow of artists, the effects have been beneficial. Durham has experienced a similar history, and is now a thriving city that survived and prospered after the decay of its manufacturing industry. Having a vibrant arts scene has been crucial to Durham’s recent economic success because of its increased appeal to the young, creative individuals who, as a class, are the key to driving economic growth. Durham consistently ranks in the top 10 in having a large creative class, with high percentage of higher degree holders and those in creative working class. Durham is also projected to have one of the highest growth rates of creative industry jobs in the nation. In a service-oriented economy, the growth of wealth and the economy will come from the jobs that require innovation, and having innovative residents in creative jobs will be essential to economic success. The creative powerhouse that is Duke University and the surrounding Research Triangle Park area, along with the upbeat art culture that is readily available in Durham, have given Durham an extremely economically advantageous pull on young, intelligent, and creative people. This paper aims to examine the arts in Durham, particularly looking at a few major components, their origins, finances, and how they have contributed and helped shape Durham’s economy. Before we begin discussing the art industry in detail, an important question is defining what constitutes the arts industry. The current Department for Culture, Media, and Sports of the UK describes the creative industry as:“those industries which have their origin in individual creativity, skill and talent and which have a potential for wealth and job creation through the generation and exploitation of intellectual property.”In this paper we will be following the DCMS definition of the following 11 sectors: advertising, architecture, arts and antique markets, crafts, design, designer fashion, film, video and photography, software and electronic publishing, visual and performance arts, publishing, television, and radio. The Arts in DurhamDurham’s artistic focus is primarily on the visual arts and performance arts: three art and photography museums, dozens of small independent art galleries, several art studios, murals, and sculptures scattered around the city. Performance venues are scattered across the city, notably the historic Carolina Theatre, the recently opened Durham Performance Arts Center, and the Hayti Heritage Center. These venues are home to various arts festivals such as the Full Frame Documentary Film Festival, considered one of the best documentary festivals in the US, and American Dance Festival, another festival of national prominence. Duke University and North Carolina Central University are also major contributors to the arts scene by hosting performances on campus from internationally renowned artists to student productions. There are also a few antique markets, along with craft stores, workshops, and street festivals devoted to crafts.The centerpiece to the Durham downtown area is undeniably the American Tobacco Campus. Seated in southern downtown Durham, ATC was the 14 acre seat of the once flourishing American Tobacco Company. It is now a lively 450,000 square feet mixed use community with 40,000 square feet of retail and restaurant space, 380 residential units, office space, open courtyard for live music, and even a YMCA. The campus has been wonderfully successful, being a hub of entertainment and exhibits for Durhamites and visitors alike. ATC’s presence in the downtown area has provided an anchor for smaller artistic venues to establish themselves around the area, knowing that there will be residents close by who could be interested in their art. Renovation of the ATC was a significant financial undertaking by the city and Capitol Broadcasting Company, but this step has been crucial in creating the successfully revitalized downtown area today. Before Capitol Broadcasting Company began considering the revitalization project in 1999, the city of Durham was already aiming to restore the downtown area to a place where people wanted to live, but had no major success stories. Many people in the city view the renovation of ATC as the linchpin for downtown revitalization. People started seeing downtown in a different light, as a place of potential growth and development and all wished to be part of it. In 1993, the downtown real estate had a total tax base valuation of $124 million. By 2004, that number had risen to $269 million, and by 2008, the number had soared to $495 million. The $200 million renovation of ATC would not have happened were it not for the significant cooperation of the private and public sectors. Without the financial commitment of Capitol Broadcasting, the financial incentives from the state and local governments, and the commitment of Duke and several companies to occupy the office space, the renovations could not have occurred, or be nearly as successful as it is today. The city has been extremely supportive throughout the process leading up to the groundbreaking in 2003, setting aside $2.8 million to construct a new DATA site, paying $15 million for a parking structure next to ATC with bonds, $8 million in cash incentives, and $43.2 million in tax incentives. The support from the city has been crucial in this process, significantly increasing the incentives for a private investor like Capitol Broadcasting to invest in such a large scale project with potential to be a great pull for people to come back to the downtown area. The $48 million Durham Performing Arts Center opened its doors in November of 2008 to a sold out show with legend B.B. King and has remained a highly popular performance venue. Less than two years after its opening, DPAC became ranked 12th in the top 100 Worldwide Theatres Venues and has welcomed its 500,000th patron. DPAC has already won local accolades: The Independent Weekly Best of Award for Live Theatre and The Herald Sun Reader’s Choice Award for Best Entertainment for 2010. DPAC’s Suntrust Broadway series, bringing popular and award winning Broadway shows, and its many other performances by popular artists have brought visitors around the area to Durham, solidifying Durham’s role as an important destination for performance arts in the area. DPAC was originally former governor Terry Sanford’s idea, to be a major entertainment center and be a home to the American Dance Festival. He died in 1998, before the idea was firmly established. What then ensued was a battle between Durham and Raleigh for the center and ADF. In the end, Durham won the battle and secured financial support from Duke, a $7.5 million, with the other $33.7 financed through bonds. With such a high volume of visitors to DPAC, the city’s investment will surely pay off at a steady pace, not only from the gains from the center, but also from the other expenditures visitors will make in Durham, as DPAC has a very strong pull on residents in the surrounding region. Festivals are also something Durham can be proud of. American Dance Festival, hosted by Duke and DPAC every summer, bringing in hundreds of students and 50 domestic and international faculty members. ADF performances sell out quickly and provide the public and professional dancers with insight into some of the best modern dancers and choreography in America for six and a half weeks. The Full Frame Documentary Film Festival, a nationally recognized annual festival showing over 100 films, attracting film makers and film lovers from the triangle area and across the globe. This past year, the festival saw a record breaking 27,111 tickets sold. There are also several other popular annual festivals held in Durham. Both of these are closely tied to Duke, which is the primary sponsor. Festivals promote the arts in a way starkly different from the usual exhibits and museums. Festivals offer a very high concentration of art at a high visibility, which usually attracts residents who would not usually be interested in the subject matter. Having these events in Durham gives the residents high quality art that is easily appreciated by a novice to a professional, adding another layer to the artistic offerings available in Durham. These festivals, of course, also bring Durham direct economic benefits as hundreds and thousands of visitors stay in Durham. Of course, DPAC, American Tobacco Campus, and transient art festivals alone could not have brought downtown Durham the popularity and success it experiences today. The smaller art galleries, exhibits, craft shops, antique stores, various art festivals, and live music bars make up the great artistic culture that attracts people to Durham. Young, intelligent people enjoy traditional arts like a large scale concert or performance, but an important part of their interests lie in the arts that offer a more intimate setting, where they can feel like they are part of the creative experiences.2 Without these smaller artistic venues, Durham would be nowhere as successful in attracting the young innovative people that drive economic growth, it would just be another city with established large scale venues for art that doesn’t foster the creative spirit inherent in the creative class. What is interesting and is most likely a contributing factor to the success of these arts scene is the relative location of these venues. New York City in the 1970’s was no exception to the exodus of manufacturing jobs and the middle class. With significant drops in property value, housing in parts of Manhattan became cheap enough for struggling artists to move in. The high concentration of so many artists in one 20 square mile grid created the vibrant and distinctive art scene still seen in the city today. An extremely important aspect that contributes to a successful art industry is the close interactions artists engage in due to proximity. Only proximity fosters collaboration and the flow of creativity needed to create the artistic culture in an area. In Durham, the art galleries, performance venues, exhibits, shops, and pubs with live music are mostly concentrated in two main areas: 9th street, and the general downtown area. Without a doubt, this proximity helped foster the attractive artistic culture for Durham artists and residents alike. The shops and galleries on 9th Street occupy mostly small one story buildings, offering a sense of intimacy, making the area a great environment for social or artistic interactions. The downtown area gives a more vibrant atmosphere with a mix of large scale venues and smaller galleries. Serving as artistic anchors, the restored American Tobacco Campus, Carolina Theater, and the newly opened DPAC have helped secure a concentrated area of art and creativity. 253365022860000330517548577500Figure SEQ Figure \* ARABIC 1: Map of Durham and Arts Related Venues. Note the concentration of the venues in two main areas: 9th Street (left) and the downtown area (on right). One big issue for the arts is funding and support. With a large number of nonprofit artistic organizations in Durham, the presence of the Durham Arts Council and the funding it provides has been essential to the vitality of the arts scene. Not only do they provide financial support for artistic institutions, but they also provide exhibit and performance areas for artists to display their works. They also encourage the community’s participation in the arts through classes on performing, literary, and visual arts for all age groups. The Durham Arts Council also works closely with the North Carolina Arts council, and together they provided wise guidance for artistic development in Durham. The State Art Council set out in late 1990’s to understand the role of arts in a community and by the early 2000’s, they came to the conclusion that art contributes to vibrant communities and productive residents, both being extremely beneficial to local economies. In turn, the Arts Council in the state and in Durham formed their strategic plans around those goals and accordingly advocated public policies that promote the arts. Durham county has consistently received one of the highest per capita funding from the state Arts Council, receiving over half a million dollars in grants in fiscal year 2006-2007. In addition, the collaboration between private businesses such as Capitol Broadcasting with the public sector has provided the drive and financial resources Durham needs for development of the downtown area. Duke University has also played an important role, contributing financially and supporting various revitalization efforts such as American Tobacco Campus by using office space around the city. Durham has been an extremely successful case of using the arts to revitalize a city and is praised throughout the state and the country for these collaborations between the arts and the rest of the city. According to the Durham Arts Council Assistant School Manager, enrollment in their arts and summer programs has been increasing steadily every year. The children enrolled in the programs are an even mix of long time Durham residents and new residents. Testimonials from the parents of why they moved have listed Duke and the downtown area as their main reasons. Recent figures from the report on the creative industry in Durham shows that creative jobs increased 9.9% between 2006 and 2008 and now comprise 4.9% of the workforce in Durham County. Durham also scored 26% higher than communities nationally in terms of having a creative environment that fosters a creative economy. Being a creative city and having the arts as a significant source of jobs and economic growth has made Durham the success it is today. However, the increased presence of the arts alone would not have made much of an impact on Durham, it is the combined effect of having Duke University and the Research Triangle Park that has brought intelligent, innovative individuals to Durham. The benefits of having a vibrant art scene have been explained in detail throughout this paper and the natural progression for future studies is to analyze this benefit empirically. ................
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