Erie County Government - Official website of the Erie County, NY Government
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Darren E. Kempner, Deputy Commissioner
Edward A. Rath County Office Building
95 Franklin Street, 10th Floor
Buffalo, New York 14202
Phone: (716) 858-8390
The Erie County Office of Arts, Culture and Tourism (ACT) was established in 2001 and functions within the Erie County Planning Division. Its primary task is to guide and provide oversight regarding Erie County's annual investment in organizations and activities that provide arts and cultural opportunities in Erie County.
Erie County is a national leader in supporting and promoting its scores of regional, national and internationally-recognized cultural activities. The organizations that provide these activities distinctively enhance the quality of life in the City of Buffalo and Erie County, and attract an increasing number of visitors to our region. These County-funded cultural assets include, among others:
The Office of ACT administers grants to not-for-profit organizations through two separate application programs.
Since 1986, funding for eligible cultural organizations has been guided by the Erie County Cultural Resources Advisory Board (ECCRAB), which is composed of 25 community volunteers with considerable business, philanthropic and cultural expertise. The primary responsibility of the Board is to review, evaluate and make recommendations to the County Executive concerning annual cultural funding requests and related issues impacting Erie County. This entire process is based on specific values that reflect Erie County's policies and objectives. The current application for funding and related materials are available under the "Related Links" section of this webpage.
ACT also administers Economic Development and Community Improvement activities. Funding for these activities is intended to assist not-for-profit organizations that may not necessarily have a primary cultural purpose, but that nevertheless provide meaningful community services with significant social and economic impacts in Erie County, such as the Buffalo Niagara Convention & Visitors Bureau, as well as environmental agencies such the Erie County Soil & Water Conservation District and Cornell Cooperative Extension of Erie County.
Copyright 2009, Erie County Department of Environment & Planning. Last Updated 05/22/09.