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At our last Strategic Community Impact Plan (SCIP) Impact Council meeting, we concentrated on the Arts, Culture and Tourism Focus Group, which came up with four very specific goals for enhancing, educating, and promoting the cultural and arts environment in Washington County.
Subsequent to our SCIP document, funds were available from the Arts, Entertainment and Education Task Force to hire the Sage Policy Group to “provide analytical insight and associated recommendations related to the promotion of cultural richness in Washington County MD.”
Their key findings are:
1. Hagerstown should be the core of Washington County’s arts, education and entertainment cluster. Downtown Hagerstown has critical mass of arts, education and entertainment infrastructure. High volume of foot traffic thanks to working population, USMH and Barbara Ingram School for the Arts.
2. The arts, education and entertainment cluster needs better coordination to fulfill its potential. The community should form a consistent vision regarding the appropriate direction of its own future.
3. Successful development of artistic and cultural assets requires rejuvenating the local retail environment. The City lacks nocturnal entertainment as well as retail variety.
4. Arts and entertainment district would benefit from improved marketing and branding. The City’s assets should be marketed under more uniform themes.
5. Target visitors with higher income. Not trying to be snobbish, but upper income population will be critical. The City should oversee the creation of housing opportunities for higher income individuals and families downtown.
6. Alter the City’s image. Many agree that downtown Hagerstown is associated with negative images. This is mainly due to visibly distressed areas, concentration of low-income households and informal business establishments. City residents have intensely negative attitudes toward their own communities.
7. Active involvement of government is critical. Local governments (both city and county) should strive toward an environment more conducive to the formation of arts and entertainment cluster; implies streetscaping and public-private partnerships with upscale developers.
The task force’s recommendations are:
1. Focus art promotion efforts in downtown Hagerstown.
• Hagerstown represents the economic core of Washington County.
• Hagerstown has the greatest concentration of art assets in the county. Eleven of 35 arts and cultural sites in Washington County are in Hagerstown.
• Downtown Hagerstown must be transformed; focus on a few blocks first.
2. Deconcentrate poverty in downtown Hagerstown, which will result in more demand for art.
• Investors and key stakeholders agree that the lack of spending power in downtown Hagerstown is a deterrent to investment in the arts and entertainment in Hagerstown.
• Downtown incomes must be raised as a prerequisite for the formation of a full-fledged arts, education and entertainment cluster in Washington County.
• To create a vibrant art community, the community needs to create an atmosphere that attracts residents/art patrons with higher income and educational attainment.
3. Create a community arts commission/downtown partnership. Hagerstown and Washington County should set up a community arts commission that will:
• Coordinate through joint marketing efforts and website development/management.
• Coordinate schedules.
• Advocate for the cluster.
4. Create an arts incubator. Upon reviewing various studies, Sage determined that:
• Arts incubators are important in assisting and attracting artists.
• The presence of artists leads to business formation, greater demand for real estate and a greater sense of vibrancy in the community.
• The Washington County Arts Council should provide technical and educational services for resident artists.
• Dedicated space is required for resident artists to interact, including with the general public.
Potential sites were identified.
5. Intensive and coordinated marketing of the county’s cultural assets.
• Market the county’s cultural assets by creating a cultural website that provides information regarding events, dates/complete calendar, times, ticket availability and other relevant information.
At the recent economic summit, Anirban Basu reinforced that idea that promoting Hagerstown’s arts and cultural attractions can be an important economic driver for the county. We were very pleased to see that the recommendations of the Sage Policy Group mirrored some the same goals and strategies that were identified by the SCIP focus group, and we look forward to working with the newly elected officials, agencies and funders to try to implement these recommendations in our arts and culture district.
Brad Sell is executive director of the Community Foundation of Washington County. Jenny Fleming is community impact director of United Way of Washington County.