1 Richmond Arts and Culture Commission
Neighborhood Public Art Mini-Grants FY 2024 - 2025
Request for Proposals (RFP)
Application Deadline: February 18, 2024, at 11:59 p.m.
Awards Confirmed: July 2024
Background:
The City of Richmond CA, Neighborhood Public Art (NPA) Mini-Grant Program is now seeking applications for the Fiscal Year 2024-2025 grant cycle. The grants are designated to stimulate arts and culture in the Richmond community, help emerging artists of all ages and ethnicities, and fund local visual, literary, and performing arts projects. Since 2010, the NPA program has been coordinated by the Richmond Arts and Culture Commission (RACC) and has engaged hundreds of community members in art projects all over the city of Richmond. To apply, please fill out the grant application and submit it by the designated deadline.
Purpose:
What an NPA Mini-Grant does:
• Provides local artists, non-profit organizations, and community members with funding for their art projects.
• Provides the opportunity for applicants to practice meeting deadlines, making budgets, and complying with contracts.
• Enriches the community, helps emerging artists to grow, and enables the artists to pass on their skills by participating in the grants that benefit local neighborhoods. “Each one, reach one, teach one.”
Eligible Art Forms:
• Performing Arts: forms of creative activity that are performed in front of an audience, such as dance, drama, music (instrumental and vocal), theater, spoken word, etc. • Literary Arts: art in the form of writing that has artistic and cultural value that displays the use of speech and language to convey certain meanings, such as fiction, non-fiction, poetry, prose, short stories, collected works, compilations, etc. • Visual Arts: art forms that are created primarily for visual perception, such as ceramics, crafts, drawings, graphic design, mosaics, murals, paintings, photography, printmaking, sculpture, etc.
ATTACHMENT 1
2 Mini-Grant Award Amounts:
Awards will be granted to multiple artist projects based on proposal budget requests and the availability of funds. Incomplete applications will not be evaluated.
Grant awards range from $2,500 - $9,000
Final awards will be disbursed in two parts. The first payment will be paid upon signing the contract for services and the 2nd payment will be paid upon successful completion of the funded project. All projects need to be completed no later than June 30, 2025.
Eligibility Criteria for Applicants:
Eligible: Richmond residents and Richmond-based organizations may apply as individuals, as a team with partners, or as a non-profit organization. Licensed non-profit organizations may serve as fiscal agents for individual mini grants. Both new projects and projects that need additional funding are eligible.
Ineligible: For-profit (corporate entities) are not eligible to apply. Employees of the City of Richmond, relatives of any current Richmond Arts and Culture Commissioner or any Richmond elected or appointed official, are not eligible to apply due to possible conflicts of interest.
Selection Process and Deadlines:
Selection Process:
All grant applications received by the deadline, which comply with the grant requirements, will be evaluated, and rated. Incomplete applications will not be considered.
Proposals found to be eligible will be reviewed by RACC Commissioners and ranked using the established review criteria. Depending on the number of eligible candidates, semi-finalists may be invited to make an in-person or virtual presentation to the RACC. From that group, a final review will take place and finalists will be offered mini grant awards. A total of $65,000 will be awarded to multiple artist projects based on proposal budget requests and the availability of funds.
Written Proposal Review:
Each eligible application is awarded points from the rater based on the following criteria:
1. Clear project description.
2. Artist experience.
3. Community outreach/engagement component.
4. Fair and reasonable cost (Budget).
3 Proposals are awarded 1 - 5 points for each criterion:
▪ 1-2 points = minimally qualified
▪ 3-4 points = moderately qualified
▪ 5 points = exceptionally qualified
The maximum overall total point score is 20 points.
Oral Proposal Review:
After the applications have been evaluated by the RACC, and scored based on their written submissions, semi-finalists may be invited to present their proposals in person or virtually.
The RACC reserves the right to select applicants to participate in the presentations at its sole discretion, prior to the final grant awards.
Application Deadlines:
December 22, 2023 NPA Mini Grant Request for Proposals (RFP) Posted January 18, 2024 Mandatory Orientation for all applicants via ZOOM @ 7:00 p.m.
February 18, 2024 Application Deadline @ 11:59 p.m.
February - March 2024 Application review
March - April 2024 RACC interviews via ZOOM from 6:00 pm – 8:00 pm April – May 2024 RACC meet to finalize selection of NPA Mini Grant Awards July 2024 Announcement of NPA Mini Grant Awards
October 2024 – June 2025 All NPA Mini Grant Awardees under contract
Grant Duration:
Upon selection of the grantees, contracts will be prepared and executed in accordance with City of Richmond's procurement and contracting guidelines. Each awarded project will be assigned a RACC Liaison to assist the grantee to ensure a successful project. The grant projects may begin as early as October 2024 but must conclude no later than June 30, 2025.
To receive the first payment, you must have a fully executed contract before you submit an invoice for ½ of the total award. To receive the final grant payment, you will be required to report back to RACC with a written summary along with photos of the completed project.
4 Additional Information:
Please note that if your proposal is selected for a grant award, you will be required to comply with additional requests for required information and/or documents prior to receiving grant funding, including but not limited to:
1. Completed W9, Vendor Supplemental Questionnaire, LLC disclosure, Sanctuary City Compliance form.
2. Proof of Insurance, as requested.
3. Signed contract with City of Richmond
4. An invoice from artist to the City of Richmond requesting an initial 50% payment.
5. All awarded candidates will be assigned a Richmond Arts and Culture Commissioner liaison, who will be available to assist and support throughout the duration of a successful public art project.
6. Any artist who receives awarded funds but is unable to provide evidence of completion of milestones (50% complete and 100% complete) will be asked to return the funds.
7. Any artist who receives awarded grant funds, shall credit the City of Richmond, and the Richmond Arts and Culture Commission as a sponsor for their public art project in all documentation associated with the project (i.e., social media posts, on the mural, etc.) A high-resolution City of Richmond logo and the Richmond Arts and Culture Commission logo will be provided to each awardee to be used on all written and other published media associated with their project.
8. Any project placed on public or private property will require a written permission from the property owner upon approval of the project and prior to contract issuance.
Questions:
Questions should be directed to: [email protected]
Arts & Culture Website:
For more information on the history of the Richmond Arts and Culture Commissions and the Public Art program, please go to: www.ci.richmond.ca.us/2064/Arts-Culture
Application Submission:
The application and any required certifications shall be signed by the individual(s) authorized to execute legal documents on behalf of the applicant.
5 Electronic applications shall be submitted via the City’s secure online system. All required sections of the application must be completed. The applicant is solely responsible for “on time” submission of their electronic proposal. The City’s secure online system will not accept late submissions and exceptions will not be made. Applicants will have the option to receive an email copy of their application. A confirmation page will appear upon successful submission indicating that the application was transmitted successfully. The City will only receive those applications that were transmitted successfully.
The application must be received no later than 11:59 p.m., local time, on February 18, 2024.