[{"_1":2,"_88":-5,"_89":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,76],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},"mediaId",6295186,"mediaKeyId","2521037-ded6baa250d45857d4bdb770ee593385","parentId",2521037,"title","Metro Arts interim director outlines budget requests, hiring steps and proposed reduction in commission size","audioSeconds",453,"startMs",5989000,"endMs",6442000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=2521037-ded6baa250d45857d4bdb770ee593385&start=5989&end=6442","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2521037-ded6baa250d45857d4bdb770ee593385/thumbnail_5989000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6295186/Tennessee/Metro-Arts-interim-director-outlines-budget-requests-hiring-steps-and-proposed-reduction-in-commission-size","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6295186-fc3c80687ca6ffdfc0a3c3ffd13d25ca/orig.mp4?Expires=1771162977&Signature=lObqJ84vXCT007zRwyK9lF7lg1-wyFyswg1ncitTYM5doxa~g56lMsi1I92zVlgxe0RJWDhTZbJHwLocJiXJOX6ldYomyP6og8xx5Qf3GoSkf35sve6RzVKanSdR6IPwjLvjzDV0~54nbJRjgj9A4q8vfyY6NMUnwWuYKKzATJqLX7G~35NrF7CRqDSRSsAB-e2B5cmShQSI~u4IU-svO6OuQMXVX7HjCDXmzK5Gk~OxFAzvuY8MsnM6Cdak5bgMaYd5f9cNeZYo4MHDllaSgGVnfMhLdl4pbZgH~sKwfjb4WXEfvllA1RvvPeRzxqcsFknryI8k7V5c7uUYF-Iu~w__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","City of Nashville, TN","date","2025-03-04T08:22:13Z","article","Interim Executive Director Ashley Gottschelder told the Metro Arts Commission that staff submitted the department’s budget modification requests and outlined hiring steps for three vacant positions while reporting commissioner turnover and a proposed change to commission size recommended by a Metro-wide boards-and-commissions working group.

Why it matters: Budget decisions and staffing directly shape the department’s capacity to implement grant contracts, public-art projects and community engagement. A proposed reduction in commission size would change quorum math and committee staffing over time and requires Metro Council action.

Budget and hiring updates

Ashley said the department requested a modest increase to its grants budget, restoration of targeted savings taken in an earlier Metro-wide exercise, funding for a court-involved-youth redesign program and resources to expand community engagement and communications capacity. She described the department’s next steps: Metro departments meet with the mayor’s office (she said her meeting was scheduled for the morning after the commission meeting), the mayor will submit a budget to council by May 1, and council holds public budget hearings and may amend those requests.

On hiring, Ashley said written-interview reviews were underway for a finance manager, with interviews anticipated the following week; the public information manager selection would follow; and the public-art manager recruitment would proceed after those two. She said the department has added temporary contract help to speed contracting for approved grants.

Commission membership, resignations and working-group recommendation

Ashley reported that three commissioners had left or had terms end: Commissioner Watts’s term ended and Commissioners Love and Nicholas Phillips resigned. She said a new nominee (Britney Cole) had been interviewed by the Rules Committee and expected to receive a final council vote the evening after the meeting.

Ashley also summarized a Metro-wide boards-and-commissions working-group recommendation to standardize board sizes to a range of 7–11 members; the working group recommended the arts commission reduce over time to 11 members. Ashley said this would not remove any commissioners midterm; the change would be phased in so bodies could continue to meet quorum and perform duties. She said the legislation had not been posted yet; commissioners would receive notification by email if the recommendation becomes formal legislation and would have opportunities to comment during the council process.

Questions and next steps

Commissioners asked for a clear timeline and the working-group rationale. Ashely said the recommendation aims to reduce bodies that have difficulty meeting quorum and to standardize practice across Metro, and she pledged to provide written follow-up with details on timeline and options for how seat reductions would be phased.

Ending

The chair announced a budget-and-audit committee chaired by Commissioner Jester to oversee pending audit implementation tasks and related finance work. The commission then moved to other items and adjourned.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","03/03/25 Special Called: Metro Arts Commission","oneSentenceSummary","Interim director Ashley Gottschelder updated the commission about FY26 budget requests, recruitment for three staff positions, recent commissioner departures and a working-group recommendation to reduce board size to 11 members over time.","taxTitle","Arts Commission Meetings, Nashville, Davidson County, Tennessee","taxId",69305,"location","Tennessee","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":77,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":78,"_41":79,"_43":80,"_45":81,"_47":82,"_49":83,"_51":84,"_53":85,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":86,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":87,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},6295191,"Metro Arts Commission approves operating and THRIVE grants totaling roughly $1.96 million for FY25",2958,97000,3055000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2521037-ded6baa250d45857d4bdb770ee593385&start=97&end=3055","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2521037-ded6baa250d45857d4bdb770ee593385/thumbnail_97000.jpg","/articles/6295191/Tennessee/Metro-Arts-Commission-approves-operating-and-THRIVE-grants-totaling-roughly-196-million-for-FY25","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6295191-63158e7221aa2f88899d0beedb3b02cf/orig.mp4?Expires=1771162977&Signature=X13xLjU-jrLtbVuWa1r3jSQZ7~tzjJLF2Nq7qnnMGj1YDdm3QBf4AwxncR-rQuJpomsggdl6l4S3p4HYsLoO4~dgQh6HW5QkDxjKyD-AluPqX5trAOtcYbp295u70AJ~lGVyBId78B38FKV5BISee-AE5563xqvp0c00NzPjgS0lLs~KBHavDTBaDhfvxLa6t7rxKQMQLdQ5393RH2dlouLw5zOBgNwVWxVd7HJ2OxKsqZZUqKQ~8l45lmt5Lmvr7crLSaW014QKccarPlKnClL~QSNfQV5h9JTm2jhLql8I~ngEhdfCh2yQtYGlgsmM-bU2HjO4mKdS0Bib2y~-uw__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","The Metro Arts Commission on a series of recorded votes approved funding recommendations for the FY25 operating and THRIVE grant cycles, awarding a total of $1,957,920 for 92 operating grantees and approving 75 THRIVE project grants.

Commissioners moved the grants-and-funding portion to the start of the agenda and then reviewed conflict-of-interest rules before voting. Tessa, a staff member, explained that Metro code 2.22202 requires commissioners to disclose conflicts when a family member, board member, fiscal agent or close contact could gain or lose financially or appearance-of-impartiality concerns exist. \"If you know that you cannot vote impartially, you should recuse yourself and identify that as a conflict of interest,\" Tessa told the commission.

Why it matters: The awards restart grant payments after the commission’s review and are the main spending decisions Metro Arts made at the meeting. Staff said contracting will begin after award notices and estimated Metro’s contract-signature process will take about four to six weeks, meaning grantees should expect contracts within that window.

What the commission approved and how it was calculated

Interim Executive Director Ashley Gottschelder presented the operating-grants funding formula: organizations are grouped by budget-size category (micro through large); the “full funding” amount is calculated as 25% of an organization’s reported revenue; those full-funding amounts are summed and then scaled to the available operating budget (60% of the overall grant budget). Ashley said the operating budget available for this cycle was $1,900,000 and the resulting scale factor produced award amounts that sum to $1,957,920 across 92 operating grantees.

For THRIVE project grants, staff said the policy is to fund approved projects at 75% of the requested amount, then allocate remaining funds in rank order and finally redistribute any leftover funds evenly among eligible awardees without exceeding original requests. Staff told the commission there were 75 projects recommended for funding; award sizes ranged from approximately $4,000 to the amount requested.

Votes at a glance

- Operating grants: Motion to approve recommended operating grantees (92 organizations; total approved $1,957,920). Outcome: approved. (Group motions and a set of pulled, individual votes recorded during the meeting; several commissioners recused on specific grantees.)
- THRIVE grants: Motion to approve the list of 75 THRIVE projects (individual applicants and projects with named fiscal agents). Outcome: approved.

Key named approvals highlighted during roll call

The commission recorded group approvals and multiple individual roll-call votes. Among the large organizations funded were Cheekwood Estate and Gardens; Nashville Ballet; Nashville Opera; Nashville Symphony Association; National Museum of African American Music; Country Music Hall of Fame; Frist Art Museum; and Tennessee Performing Arts Center. Mid-size, medium, small and micro category grantees were approved in a mix of group motions and individually pulled votes. For THRIVE, staff read the number and the applicant/fiscal agent pairs and the commission approved them (examples include projects using fiscal agents such as The Forge, North Nashville Arts Coalition, Belcourt Theater, International Black Film Festival, Global Education Center and others).

Conflict disclosures and recusal practice

Commissioners repeatedly disclosed conflicts. The chair and staff instructed commissioners to identify conflicts on forms filed with staff and to mark the packet so staff could pull items from group votes. The commission used the procedure that any grantee with identified conflicts would be removed from a category vote and considered separately so the remaining commissioners could vote on the rest of a category. Tessa explained that if a grantee might produce a monetary gain to a commissioner or a close relation or if the public would perceive partiality, that should be disclosed and the commissioner should recuse.

Process and timeline

Ashley told the commission that award notices would be emailed to applicants (awardees and non-awardees) and that contracting would then begin; she estimated contracts would take roughly four to six weeks to complete through Metro. The commission also said it had brought on extra contract help because of staff capacity constraints to expedite the contracting phase.

Ending

After the final THRIVE approvals, staff confirmed that notices would go out the week of the meeting and the contracting phase would start. The commission then moved on to other agenda items.","The Metro Arts Commission voted to award 92 operating grants totaling $1,957,920 and to fund 75 THRIVE project grants after staff explained the funding formulas and commissioners handled multiple recusals for conflicts of interest.","actionData","errors"]

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Metro Arts interim director outlines budget requests, hiring steps and proposed reduction in commission size

Metro Arts Commission approves operating and THRIVE grants totaling roughly $1.96 million for FY25