ArtsFund Studies Economic Impact of Arts in Puget Sound
(1-19-2011) ArtsFund, a Seattle-based grantmaking organization, has released a pair of Economic Impact Studies, one focused on King County, Washington (which includes Seattle) and another for the broader Puget Sound Region. A year in the making, these studies analyze the impacts of arts and cultural organizations and their patrons during 2009 and 2010. They were authored by Dr. William Beyers, University of Washington, and GMA Research Corporation of Bellevue, Washington.
These studies report on the economic impact of hundreds non-profit arts, cultural, and scientific organizations located in the King County or the Central Puget Sound region. The studies document economic impacts through data gathered on the expenditures that these organizations and their patrons make in the local and Washington state economies. It includes organizations with budgets of at least $30,000 in dance, festival, heritage, theatre, music, science, and the visual arts. It also includes public and private sector non-profit organizations supporting the delivery of services from arts, cultural, and scientific organizations.