The Boulder County Cultural Council presented its recommended distribution of Scientific and Cultural Facilities District (SCFD) Tier 3 funds at the July 29 Board of County Commissioners meeting; the board voted to accept the recommendations.

What happened: Alita Sherman and BCC Chair Maria Estudio described the review process, scoring rubric and allocation formula used to distribute available Tier 3 funds. The council reported it reviewed 94 applications (66 general operating support applications and 28 project applications). The council prioritized general operating support (GOS) while allocating a portion to project-based awards. Maria Estudio summarized the allocation history and the scoring process the council used and explained the choice of scenario used to finalize awards.

Why it matters: SCFD Tier 3 funding supports many local arts and cultural organizations and helps sustain operations and project-level programming throughout the county. The council balanced requests and available funds and recommended a mix of operating support and project awards to maintain organizations’ stability while funding select projects that increase county impact.

Outcome: The Board of County Commissioners accepted the Cultural Council’s recommendations (motion to accept made on the record and approved by voice vote). Specific figures presented in the packet: available funds reported as $1,310,170 and the council’s distribution favored GOS recipients; staff and council materials in the packet list award-by-award allocations and the council said full details will be available in the final packet and award notifications.

Ending: Commissioners thanked the Cultural Council members for their work and acknowledged Maria Estudio’s service as council chair.