[MplsSteve]

I'm not opposed to the arts - not most it anyways. But I'm just not sure that some of these grandiose arts centers can be justified - especially when they bleed red ink like they do.

Regarding Bloomington's art center (a suburb I grew up in), it is immediately attached to the new city hall which was built at the same time as the arts center. There are many in Bloomington who thought that the city needed a new city hall but not one as grandiose as the combined city hall/arts center is.

While it's clearly understood that these type of projects are not immediately self-supporting, I get the distinct feeling that they rarely ever do. Perhaps funding for these types of projects should come from the private sector instead of viewing it (as Bloomington's mayor said) asn extended form of park and rec.

Comments or opinions - anyone?

[MplsSteve]

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[pnh102]

I am so sick of local governments claiming to be "broke" or otherwise strapped for cash when they always seem to have money to finance or subsidize this kind of thing.

If someone likes an arts center, let them pay for it out of their own checkbook.

[libertarian27]

Let me guess...their mantra before it was built was:
“If you build it~they will come”

Stuff like that is really touching in movies.....

[vpintheak]

NOT WORTH IT.

[WOBBLY BOB]

In its first year, the 16-month-old arts center lost $533,599 -- about 20 percent more than projected.

But all that matter with leftards are intentions.(This is all "unexpected".)

[toast]

In Woodbury a private donor ponied up some money.
They made the auditorium on the new high school extra nice and named it an arts center with her name on it.

[LachlanMinnesota]

Is it really culture if the government has to run it? It sounds more like forced culture that would not otherwise be supported.