FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Study Shows Orange County Nonprofit Arts & Culture Sector is a $130.3 million industry
ORANGE COUNTY, NC (October 9, 2017) – The Orange County Arts Council announced today that the nonprofit arts and culture sector generated $130.3 million in direct economic activity, supported 5,001 full-time equivalent jobs and generated $12.5 million in local and state government revenue in 2015.
“The study shows that the arts are a tool for Orange County, providing jobs and economic advantages to our communities,” said Katie Murray, Director of the Orange County Arts Commission. “When compared to participating communities of similar size, as well as other small towns with large public universities, Orange County ranks significantly higher than other communities in terms of total impact of the arts.”
The study, Arts & Economic Prosperity 5: The Economic Impact of Nonprofit Arts and Culture Organizations and Their Audiences in North Carolina (AEP 5) is conducted every five years and is issued by Americans for the Arts in partnership with nonprofit arts and culture organizations in 20 states that were part of 341 study regions across the U.S.
The Orange County Arts Commission was 1 of 24 counties and seven municipalities in the state that conducted a study.
Orange County Arts & Economic Prosperity 5 at a Glance:
- The nonprofit arts and culture sector generates $12.5 million in revenue for local governments and the State of North Carolina.
- The nonprofit arts and culture sector supports 5,001 full-time equivalent jobs.
- Audiences – estimated at 1.9 million attendees – spent more than $36.7 million. This spending does not include the cost of admissions. The average amount that audiences spent outside of the cost of admissions was $18.29 which includes going to restaurants, parking, transportation, lodging, and buying things at retail establishments before or after attending the arts event.
- A total of 5,034 volunteers donated 246,771 hours to the nonprofit arts and cultural organizations that participated in the study, representing an estimated value of $5.8 million.
“The data that this survey has provided proves that the arts are a significant industry in Orange County, one that provides millions of dollars in government revenue and generates thousands of jobs. These numbers will only grow as the arts communities of Chapel Hill, Carrboro and Hillsborough become even stronger,” stated Murray.
Economic impact figures for the Triangle Area were also announced today by Wayne Martin, Executive Director of the North Carolina Arts Council. The Triangle Area report included the counties of Chatham, Durham, Franklin, Granville, Harnett, Johnston, Lee, Moore, Orange, Person, Vance, Wake and Warren counties. Durham, Moore, Orange and Wake counties conducted their own reports.
Triangle North Carolina Area Arts & Economic Prosperity 5 at a Glance:
- The nonprofit arts and culture sector in the Triangle generated $863.2 million in direct economic activity in 2015.
- The nonprofit arts and culture sector generates $83.8 million in revenue for local governments and the State of North Carolina.
- The nonprofit arts and culture sector supports 31,219 full-time equivalent jobs.
- Audiences spent more than $475 million in 2015.
- Residents of the Triangle spent an average of $18 per person.
- Attendees from outside the region spent an average of $49 per person.
A total of 51.4 percent of the eligible nonprofit arts and cultural organizations in the Triangle Area participated in the study. Statewide, North Carolina’s nonprofit arts and culture sector includes almost 2,500 organizations with more than half participating in the study.
“For 50 years, the North Carolina Arts Council has been guided by the belief that the arts uplift individuals, transform our communities and enhance the reputation of our state,” Martin said. “’Arts for all citizens,’ the founding ideal for the Arts Council in 1967, has clearly fostered economic success and public participation in the arts across our state.”
About the Orange County Arts Commission: Created in 1985 as the official government agency on the arts by a Resolution of the Board of County Commissioners (BOCC), the Orange County Arts Commission (OCAC) serves as a clearinghouse for arts information, facilitator of arts programs & advisor to the Orange County Board of County Commissioners regarding the arts. As the Designated County Partner (DCP) of the North Carolina Arts Council in Orange County since 1985, the OCAC is responsible for sub-granting state and county funds to arts organizations, schools and artists throughout the county. Our mission is to promote and strengthen the artistic and cultural development of Orange County, North Carolina.
About the North Carolina Arts Council: The North Carolina Arts Council builds on our state’s longstanding love of the arts, leading the way to a more vibrant future. The Arts Council is an economic catalyst, fueling a thriving nonprofit creative sector that generates $2.12 billion in direct economic activity. The Arts Council is also a cultural pathfinder, sustaining diverse arts expression and traditions and investing in new innovative approaches to art-making. The North Carolina Arts Council has also proven to be a champion for youth by cultivating tomorrow’s creative citizens through arts education. www.NCArts.org