Commission approves SYCA endowment policy and initial $136,549 transfer to endowed programming fund

The Sturgis City Commission approved a new policy governing foundation funds for the Sturgis Young Center for the Arts (SYCA) and authorized creation of an SYCA endowed programming fund seeded with $136,549 transferred from the existing non‑endowed programming fund.

Andrew Cook, city staff, and Jamie, SYCA director, laid out differences between non‑endowed programming funds (used directly for each season’s expenses) and an endowed fund (principal preserved; only the annual spendable distribution would be used). Staff said the endowed fund is intended to create a long-term funding stream for programming and that the transfer would leave the non‑endowed fund with a modest buffer for the coming season.

The policy clarifies that transfers from non‑endowed to endowed funds would occur only after a majority recommendation from the SYCA board and commission approval, and that the charitable fund agreement with the Sturgis Area Community Foundation will be finalized with the purpose language and reviewed by the city attorney before execution.

Commissioners asked for corrections to misspelled names in the draft policy and confirmed the commission must approve any transfers to the endowed fund. The commission approved the policy, the charitable fund agreement contingent on final attorney review, and the proposed transfer of $136,549 to seed the new SYCA endowed programming fund.

What happens next: City staff will work with the community foundation to finalize the charitable fund agreement language, correct typographic errors and return the final documents for signing after attorney review.

Provenance: SYCA presentation and motions are recorded in the meeting transcript in the SYCA policy packet and subsequent vote segments.