Arkansans for the Arts’ slogan is “Arts Means Business,” and the statewide advocacy organization is investing in Pine Bluff’s plan to turn around its economy through heritage tourism.
ARftA, as the organization is known in short, held a town hall meeting of arts leaders from other communities at the ARTSpace on Main Friday to hear from experts how arts-related industries can make an economic impact. Pine Bluff and El Dorado are said to be on the frontlines of creating and expanding growth in such industries with plans for a Delta Rhythm and Bayous Cultural District in place and the Murphy Arts District in full swing in the respective cities.
El Dorado has relied on music and performance arts to spark a turnaround from being the Union County city of less than 20,000 that has steadily declined from 25,300 in 1980. Pamela Griffin, president and CEO of El Dorado Festivals & Events — the group behind the city’s Murphy Arts District — shared at the town hall how the arts generated tourism dollars for her city. She cautioned, though, a turnaround for Pine Bluff will require much patience on the part of its citizens.
“We’re still working on that in El Dorado,” Griffin said. “Getting local buy-in is, oftentimes, harder than getting buy-in from people outside of your community because they live it, they see it. For the most part people go to work, go home, take kids to the ballpark, take kids to school and go to the grocery store — and they live in that circle. I think a lot of it is getting people out of their normal routine and out of their circle so they can experience what is going on in their community. Then, once you get them involved, they’ll get excited about what’s going on.”
The Murphy Arts District, which is home to several live performances of big-name bands, includes a 25,000-square-foot music hall, farmers’ market and play center for children. Griffin said she’s found many families who live in El Dorado stay for a weekend and those from outside the city will visit if a big-name act will perform.
Independent reporting for Pine Bluff & Jefferson County since 1879.
“We do see some of that, and we see people looking to find their entertainment options locally, as opposed to going to Little Rock or Shreveport to spend their entertainment dollars outside the community. Keeping those entertainment dollars inside is a form of economic development,” Griffin said.
Pine Bluff allocated $2 million toward the Delta Rhythm and Bayous Cultural District, which developer Jimmy Cunningham Jr. said has given members of the Pine Bluff Advertising and Planning Commission the chance to request funding from other foundations.
“I’m meeting with a major foundation next month, and hopefully we will be able to come out of that with some money on the table,” said Cunningham, the tourism development director for the commission. “We’ve more than doubled our footprint from the first time we presented this to the city, so we’ve moved from a Chevrolet to a Cadillac model at this point.”
Expanding the footprint, Cunningham said, was the result of planners looking at the bigger picture of telling more of Pine Bluff’s story with blues in the 20th century and using more property.
“We could make a bigger thing better,” he explained. “I think they would have funded us with a smaller footprint because they funded other programs that way. We just have a big story, and we intend to knock it out of the park.”
According to ARftA, $2.9 billion of the state’s gross domestic product is generated through the arts and culture sector. While the sector is the No. 1-ranked pipeline for the workforce of the future in arts and technology in the state, according to ARftA’s data, 100% of Arkansas’ urban/rural renewal and community revitalization projects start with an arts and culture centerpiece to attract business, residents and visitors; 90% believe arts should be taught in grades K-12 and are needed for a well-rounded education; 82% believe the arts are critical to local businesses and the economy; and 59% of art graduates from the University of Central Arkansas have said they will leave the state if they cannot find paid job opportunities.
ARftA board Chairwoman Jean Lacefield said the organization intends to help the Pine Bluff A&P and other developing organizations across Arkansas with projects to boost arts-related tourism.
“We have a Legislative Arts Caucus, so we have 16 legislators — (that’s) eight Democrats and eight Republicans on it, because art is nonpartisan,” Lacefield said. “We would want them to find funding to increase the arts within our entire state. We can’t do things just alone. We need the support of our legislative body.”
Attendees also heard from Saracen Casino Resort chef and food/beverage director Cynthia East-Malik and University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff hospitality and tourism management coordinator Suzzette Shaw Goldmon about how their industries have or can impact the local economy. Delta Rhythm and Bayous is next, Cunningham believes, adding plans for his project will not fall by the wayside.
“Just keep an eye on us, because we’re going to do this,” he said. “I expect the public to ask questions about this. I expect the public to follow this and demand answers and to expect excellence as these folks are talking about at this meeting.”
Jimmy Cunningham Jr. of the Pine Bluff Advertising and Planning Commission explains his plans for the Delta Rhythm and Bayous Cultural District at an Arkansans for the Arts town-hall meeting Friday, April 26, 2024, at the ARTSpace on Main. (Pine Bluff Commercial/I.C. Murrell)