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- December 12, 2011 The Arts Consortium of Carver County Expresses Interest in Eitel House
Jonathan Association Board of Directors:
The Arts Consortium of Carver County would like to take this opportunity to formally express interest in acquiring the Eitel House in carrying out its mission “… to support and serve as a viable resource and advocate for artists and the arts in the communities of Carver County.”
The Arts Consortium, the ACCC, has been in existence for approximately 2 ½ years. “To consort” means “to keep company!” Our Vision: Community is strengthened through the arts. A stronger arts presence is possible through better coordination of resources, opportunities, promotion, expertise, and fundraising. Business, government, education, individual, civic and community-based organizations all have a stake in the success of a strong art program. The ACCC is designed to bring together these entities.
Currently, we are bringing the arts to the community through our website, www.artsofcarvercounty.org. Our long-term goal is to have “a shingle” in each community in the County. The Eitel House would be ideal for our first site! It resides in Chaska, the County Seat, and in Jonathan, coined “the New Town” over 30 years ago, which from the beginning recognized the importance of arts in the community. Founder, Henry McKnight understood that “livability” required a role for the arts. The Eitel House would be an ACCC “gathering space”, and among other things, it could be utilized for art classes, studio and gallery space.
Being a young organization, the ACCC’s acquisition of the Eitel House would be contingent upon our receiving grant dollars. Through MRAC, the Metropolitan Regional Art Council, grants are available for “art in the community.” At the federal level, grants are also available from three different agencies: the Department of Transportation, the Environmental Protection Agency and the National Education Association. They each have standards of “livability” and the arts are part of that definition! The ACCC has recently appointed a veteran grant writer to the Board. Through grants, the ACCC will pursue funding to make the Eitel House our home – bringing the arts to the Jonathan community by becoming an arts destination for artists and art enthusiasts across the entire County.
We are looking forward to your thoughts on this matter.
ACCC Board of Directors