The New York State Council on the Arts Capital Improvement Grants for Arts and Culture invest in arts and cultural projects that serve New York State’s diverse communities, residents and visitors.
Donor Name: New York State Council on the Arts
State: New York
County: All Counties
Type of Grant: Grant
Deadline: 01/14/2025
Size of the Grant: More than $1 million
Grant Duration: 3 years
Details:
Strong projects combine excellence in design with informed decisions about organizational capacity and community needs that will positively affect the future of arts and cultural organizations across the state.
Arts and cultural organizations offer programming that provides benefits to their communities and makes a substantial contribution to the New York State economy. The capacity of these organizations to maintain their facilities and make strategic capital improvements is central to their ability to deliver on their missions, contribute economic benefit to their local areas, and provide their communities with vital arts programming in a safe and accessible environment. Through its Small and Midsized Capital Improvement Grants for Arts and Culture, NYSCA makes strategic investments in those facilities to:
- Ensure that all people in New York have access to vibrant arts experiences.
- Sustain and grow the arts’ role as a critical sector of New York’s economy.
- Provide the necessary capital investments to maintain New York’s globally recognized role as a creative engine.
Program Priorities
Applicants must demonstrate how the project will support program priorities, including, but not limited to, any of the following goals:
- Accessibility. Make improvements that meet or exceed accessibility standards to create an inclusive environment for artists and participants of all abilities.
- Artistry. Enable arts and cultural programming that is more creatively compelling for artists and audiences alike.
- Cultural Development. Provide further access to cultural offerings in rural areas or communities that have historically been underserved.
- Diversity. Supports improvements at organizations that prioritize diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility throughout leadership, staff, governance, audience, and programming.
- Environmental Sustainability. Demonstrate environmental stewardship and/or sustainable building practices, improve energy efficiency and mitigate the negative effects of climate change on the organization’s ability to operate.
- Health and Safety. Address known health and safety deficiencies and adhere to new public health guidelines and requirements.
- Organizational Health. Make capital investments that reduce operating costs and/or provide new opportunities for revenue generation that will improve the health of the organization.
- Structural and Historical Improvements. Address issues of building stabilization and historic preservation.
Funding Information
$50,000 – $2,000,000.
Grant Period
July 1, 2025 – June 30, 2028 (3 years, extensions of up to 2 years considered).
Uses of funds
This program can only fund capital projects and capitally-eligible expenses. This can include the construction of new facilities and the renovation or restoration of existing buildings, as well as the permanent installation of new, complete equipment systems. Maintenance, repairs and other types of equipment do not qualify as capital. Acquisition can be covered by matching funds if the acquired property is the location of the proposed project, but property acquisition is not an eligible use of NYSCA Capital funds directly. Programming, overhead, salaries, maintenance, repairs, and other operating expenses are not eligible.
Eligibility Criteria
- Applicants must be a nonprofit organization with a primary mission to support arts and culture, either incorporated in or registered to do business in New York State, with a location in New York State, and recognized as tax-exempt under the Internal Revenue Code section as a 501(c)(3).
- Arts organizations that operate autonomously but are embedded in private universities or other non-arts 501(c)(3) organizations located in New York State may contact NYSCA to determine whether they are eligible.
- Organizations that have an LLC designation are not eligible to apply to NYSCA either directly or through a fiscal sponsor. This includes Limited Liability Company (LLC), Limited Liability Partnership (LLP), and business corporation designations.
For more information, visit NYSCA.
