BATON ROUGE — The Arts Council of Greater Baton Rouge's leadership plans to ask the Metro Council to maintain its funding after the introduction of a proposed 2027 budget that would strip the arts agency of its $250,000 in annual city-parish dollars.

The Arts Council was one of 15 organizations that would have their funding reduced to zero under the proposal.

Arts Council President and CEO Jonathan Grimes said that his group will join other affected agencies at upcoming Metro Council budget hearings, including one on Nov. 19, to "make the case for restoring funding."

"The proposed funding cuts would affect every part of our work, from the programs residents attend to the staff and operations that make those programs possible," Arts Council President and CEO Jonathan Grimes said Tuesday. '

This comes as East Baton Rouge Parish prepares to spend the remaining money from the 2021 allocation of the American Rescue Plan Fund, a COVID-19 era grant sent to cities around the country to support daily operations.

Grimes says that, under City Resolution No. 9830 and Parish Resolution No. 16258, the Arts Council is the city-parish's designated local arts agency.

"This designation helps us qualify for state and federal funding that we distribute as grants to local artists and arts organizations. We also administer the Art in Public Places Program, which oversees design standards for public art on City-Parish property," Grimes added.

He said that continued investment from the parish would help keep artistic experiences like those at the Cary Saurage Community Arts Center accessible to residents, as well as providing outlets to local artists.