Tampa Bay Arts Organizations Receive Significant Investment in Emergency Preparedness and Sustainability for the Arts
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Helen French | St. Petersburg Arts Alliance | 727-510-5511 | helen@stpeteartsalliance.org Michele Smith | Tampa Arts Alliance | 813-401-6534 | smith@tampaartsalliance.org
Tampa Bay Arts Organizations Receive Significant Investment in Emergency Preparedness and Sustainability for the Arts
ST. PETERSBURG & TAMPA, FL (September 28, 2026) Three Local Arts Agencies (LAAs) were selected for SouthArts Creative Resilience Emergency Preparedness and Sustainability for the Arts initiative: St. Petersburg Arts Alliance (SPAA), Tampa Arts Alliance (TAA), and Arts AVL of Asheville, NC. Each agency will receive a $100,000 grant over two years to strengthen disaster preparedness, emergency readiness, and long-term resilience for artists and arts organizations in their communities. While this investment is an incredible opportunity for each entity to develop preparedness strategies for their constituents, this funding also represents national recognition of the vibrancy of Tampa Bay’s arts ecosystem as a whole.
Creative Resilience is a two-year pilot initiative developed by South Arts to support arts communities recovering from Hurricanes Helene and Milton. Supported by the Robert Rauschenberg Foundation, the program provides funding that enables local arts agencies to develop preparedness strategies, build community partnerships, and strengthen the capacity of artists and arts organizations to respond to future emergencies.
SPAA will host a series of free community sessions covering disaster preparedness, financial readiness, digital tools, mental health, and advocacy, designed for the needs of both organizational leaders and individual artists.They will also develop a Creative Resilience Coalition of community stakeholders and a formal emergency preparedness plan, so the work can continue beyond the grant.
SPAA’s Executive Director, Helen French, notes, "Every emergency we've faced, whether a pandemic, a recession, a downturn in tourism, or back-to-back hurricanes, has tested the creative infrastructure that supports our arts and culture sector, and too often our responses have been built under pressure. Arts and culture are not peripheral to St. Petersburg's success. They are part of the economic engine and community identity that make this city thrive. When disasters disrupt artists and cultural organizations, the impact extends far beyond the arts sector and is felt throughout our community. Creative Resilience gives us the opportunity to plan ahead, strengthen preparedness, and ensure that artists and organizations are ready when the next challenge arrives."
Tampa Arts Alliance will use the two-year investment to build practical resilience infrastructure for Tampa’s creative community, focusing on three interconnected areas: financial literacy and wealth-building for creatives; natural-disaster preparedness and recovery; and advocacy and civic engagement for the arts. Through neighborhood-based programming, expert-led training, digital tools and resources, and cross-sector partnerships, the initiative will help artists and arts organizations develop the financial strategies, emergency plans, networks, and knowledge
needed to sustain their work through disruption and strengthen their long-term capacity.
“Artists are often among the first people we turn to to help communities process change, reconnect, and imagine what comes next. But resilience also requires investing in the artists themselves. This initiative allows us to move beyond responding after a crisis and build the financial strength, preparedness, relationships, and civic capacity our creative community needs before the next disruption arrives. That is infrastructure essential to a healthy creative economy.” shares Michele Smith, President & CEO, Tampa Arts Alliance.
For more information about Creative Resilience or opportunities to participate in future planning and preparedness efforts, contact the St. Petersburg Arts Alliance or Tampa Arts Alliance.
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About St. Petersburg Arts Alliance
The St. Petersburg Arts Alliance (SPAA) is the umbrella organization for St. Petersburg’s arts and cultural community. SPAA drives arts-related economic development, advocates for art and artists, and educates at all levels, facilitating the growth of the City of the Arts. Its programs range from the SHINE Mural Festival and the 2nd Saturday ArtWalk to arts education and professional development. For more information, visit StPeteArtsAlliance.org and follow @stpeteartsalliance on social media.
About Tampa Arts Alliance
Tampa Arts Alliance is the nonprofit local arts agency serving the city of Tampa, dedicated to building the foundational infrastructure that enables the region’s creative ecosystem to thrive. Through strategic investment, advocacy, convening, and cross-sector collaboration, the Alliance expands opportunities for artists and arts organizations, fosters creative commerce, and
strengthens Tampa’s cultural economy. Guided by a vision for Tampa to be internationally recognized as a vibrant and dynamic city for the arts, the Alliance is helping shape a more connected, creative, and economically vibrant future. Learn more at tampaartsalliance.org.
About Robert Rauschenberg Foundation
The Robert Rauschenberg Foundation builds on the legacy of artist Robert Rauschenberg, emphasizing his belief that artists can drive social change. Rauschenberg sought to act in the “gap” between art and life, valuing chance and collaboration across disciplines. As such, the Foundation celebrates new and even untested ways of thinking.
About South Arts
South Arts advances Southern vitality through the arts. The nonprofit regional arts organization was founded in 1976 to build on the South’s unique heritage and enhance the public value of the arts. South Arts’ work responds to the arts environment and cultural trends with a regional perspective. South Arts offers an annual portfolio of activities designed to support the success of artists and arts providers in the South, address the needs of Southern communities through impactful arts-based programs, and celebrate the excellence, innovation, value and power of
the arts of the South. For more information, visit www.southarts.org.