ISSUE 05-21-22 $40,000 GRANT FOR ARTS & CULTURAL DISTRICT HERE

Corrales should be a shoo-in for state recognition as an “Arts and Cultural District,” and a $40,000 state grant to produce a Cultural Economic Development Plan has launched the process. But artists here, as elsewhere, are notoriously difficult to organize and some are inclined to quarrels and even back-biting. If that’s what happens as planning gets underway, maybe the “cultural” part of the project will smooth things out.

The Corrales Historical Society has been laying the groundwork for such a district for more than a decade as evidenced by its blue plaques designating historic structures along Corrales Road’s commercial area. At the May 10 Village Council meeting, Corrales accepted the grant terms and allocated $8,000 from its own coffers as the local match for the project which will be driven by Corrales MainStreet, Inc.

The upcoming Arts and Cultural District plan is described by the N.M. Department of Economic Development as on which not only “addresses the needs of, and opportunities for artists, cultural institutions and  community citizens, it easily integrates into relevant aspects of city planning, historic preservation, cultural tourism development, urban design and downtown revitalization.”

The planning process is supposed to be “developed through a broad-based community engagement planning process designed to identify and build on the community’s outstanding arts, cultural, natural and heritage assets.”

Funding apparently will hire a planning consultant who will collaborate with a Corrales arts and cultural district committee “to develop a community engagement plan for cultivating cultural plan elements.”

A key component will be “cultural asset mapping” which “inventories arts and cultural assets including artists and craftspeople, funding institutions, educational centers, media, cultural entrepreneurs and other creative businesses that are related to community values, strengths, assets and history.”

Specified as a component of the plan is a “overview of the history and settlement of the community [which can] identify key historical or cultural events or populations that can serve as contributing to a  place-based identity for the district.”

The Corrales Historical Society has that well-covered, along with the component for “preservation and conservation of existing historic buildings and cultural properties.”

More  problematic is the component calling for evaluation of “transportation, or transit, traffic and pedestrian issues related to creating a walkable pedestrian-friendly environment through pedestrian enhancements and traffic-calming measures.”

The Economic Development Department’s grant agreement with the Village outlines specific elements of public participation, including “a widely advertised community kick-off meeting to introduce the community to the project and provide methods for the community to participate throughout the  process.” An early step is to identify key people to be interviewed and included in focus groups.