The Manager's report back on the creation of an arts friendly page highlighting the key licenses and permits available to support artists, arts organization, and creative enterprises in developing and producing their work for the benefit of local and regional audiences

CC:

Nicole Murati Ferrer, Chair, License Commission Mary Hart, Chief Information Officer Date: 7/23/2019 Re:

Awaiting Report, Policy Order #3 This memo is in response to Policy Order #3 from the March 25th City Council Meeting (Awaiting Report 19-39), which requests the creation of an “arts friendly” page and related navigation on the City of Cambridge website highlighting the key licenses and permits available to support artists, arts organizations, and creative enterprises in developing and producing their work for the benefit of local and regional audiences.

Working in partnership with the Cambridge License Commission and the Information and Technology Department, Cambridge Arts created a dedicated web landing page that provides an organized approach and direct access to specific municipal licenses and permits that are most frequently required by artists and organizations to produce and carry out their work. This information and list were informed by the participating departments and expanded by Cambridge Arts to include key additional permits issued by the Department of Public Works and Traffic, Parking & Transportation.

The expanded list of permits and licenses is informed by the work that Cambridge Arts does to support local and regional creatives throughout the year via core programs, including: Cambridge Arts Grant Program, Public Art/Percent-for-Art, Cambridge Street Performer Program, and a variety of produced events such as Cambridge Arts River Festival, Cambridge Arts Open Studios, Summer in the City, Cambridge Poetry Programs, and Cambridge Arts Creative Marketplace. Importantly, it also took as a guide the licenses and permits most frequently issued to those individuals and organizations approved by the DPW Special Events Committee to conduct work in Cambridge.

July 23, 2019 2 This new web landing page and list was added to the primary “Resources” section of the Cambridge Arts departmental web presence on the City of Cambridge website. Entitled, “Permits for Artists and Events”, it provides a straightforward directory of licenses and permits with active hyperlinks that route directly to the information, permits, and license applications issued by the following departments to support artists, art-making, and presentation:

• Cambridge Arts
• Department of Public Works
• Traffic, Parking & Transportation
• License Commission

Working with the Information and Technology Department, Cambridge Arts and partnering departments will continue to refine and expand the list as needed and determine further steps that can be taken to ensure that this resource presents a streamlined user experience and can be readily accessed from multiple points on the City website and used and understood by the community as a single stop for artists, creatives, and arts organizations who wish to carry out their work in Cambridge.