Colusa awarded $90K music series grant

Nov. 17—The Colusa County Arts Council was awarded with a $90,000, multi-year Levitt AMP Grant to present a free outdoor concert series at Veterans Memorial Park in Colusa in 2023 through 2025.

"The first Levitt AMP Colusa Music Series, presented by the Colusa County Arts Council at Veterans Memorial Park, marks the next chapter in the agricultural city's efforts to amplify community pride in a region hit by wildfires and drought," read a statement issued by the Levitt Foundation. "The Levitt AMP Colusa Music Series will elevate and expand an existing concert series, bringing people together from throughout the area to enjoy music and inspire economic development in the downtown business district."

Colusa was one of 33 communities — which includes 15 new and 18 returning guarantees — to receive this grant funding after a public voting period and comprehensive internal review process, according to Levitt Foundation officials. These grants will award $3 million dollars to nonprofits serving small- to mid-sized towns and cities across the U.S. as part of the Levitt AMP Music Series, which features a diverse lineup of artists, music genres and cultural programming to create inclusive experiences for all members of the community.

"Since the Levitt AMP Grant Awards began in 2015, we've seen grassroots nonprofits inspire

transformation in their towns and cities through free outdoor concerts — activating underused

public spaces, ensuring access to the arts, sparking additional investments, and strengthening the social fabric of their communities. Positive change happens when people of all ages and backgrounds come together and we're thrilled to support changemakers like Colusa County Arts Council," said Sharon Yazowski, executive director of the Levitt Foundation. "The first Levitt AMP Colusa Music Series will breathe new life into Veterans Memorial Park, amplifying community pride while connecting to a sense of resiliency as the area's diverse populations gather to celebrate music and the arts."

For the 2023 to 2025 grant cycle, Levitt Foundation officials said they expanded the Levitt AMP program from an annual matching grant of $25,000 into a three-year matching grant of $30,000 per year, for a total grant award of $90,000 per recipient.

In April, the Levitt Foundation began accepting proposals from nonprofits that would reflect the three goals of the Levitt AMP awards: Amplify community pride and the city's unique character; enrich lives through the power of free, live music; and illustrate the importance of vibrant public places.

"The city of Colusa has been the pride of the county and the economic epicenter of the agricultural community for many years," said Colusa County Arts Council officials in the proposal, which was submitted in partnership with the city of Colusa. "Unfortunately, the last few years have seen a downturn of community pride due to the stresses of the global pandemic but more specifically the stresses of being a rural community in a world under pressure of climate change and falling agricultural prices."

In the proposal, council officials also said the Levitt Amp Your City Concert Series would go a long way to restoring community pride because the citizens of the city of Colusa and Colusa County could come together to just enjoy a park and connect with their neighbors.

"It would give residents a chance to connect to music and relieve nostalgic moments from the past, discover new beats or be transported through a new cultural experience," read the proposal. "By putting on an event they can be proud of, it can also encourage residents to invite out of town friends and family to come for a visit as they show off their town park. It is especially important to give our disadvantaged community the ability to experience music that they would not be able to access without leaving the surrounding area. A privilege that usually is only enjoyed by a select few."

In October, Colusa was selected as one of 20 finalists in the running for the Levitt AMP grant after a public voting period. According to Levitt officials, more than 89,210 votes were cast Sept. 12-21 for the original 36 community proposals that advanced to the voting period, setting a new record for the Levitt AMP grant program.

Proposals then went through a comprehensive internal review process before the grant recipients were announced on Tuesday.

According to officials, the Levitt Foundation is a private family foundation that exists to strengthen the social fabric of America.

"Through its commitment to creative placemaking, the Levitt Foundation supports the activation of underused public spaces — such as neglected parks, vacant downtown lots, and former brownfields — into welcoming, inclusive destinations where the power of free, live music brings people together to create more equitable, healthy and thriving communities," said officials in a statement.

The foundation's primary funding areas include Levitt venues and the Levitt AMP Grant Awards, which are both programs that present free concerts in outdoor, open lawn settings featuring high-caliber talent in a broad array of music genres and cultural programming.

"Levitt venues and Levitt AMP concert sites attract people of all ages and backgrounds and reflect the character of their town or city, while benefiting from the framework and best practices of the Levitt program," said officials.

The music series hosted in Colusa takes place at Veterans Memorial Park in Colusa annually each summer.