Cultural Planning

What is Cultural Planning?
Cultural Planning takes stock of existing cultural resources and asks how they can be developed to improve the vitality, prosperity, and success of our community.

Why Does Culture Matter?
Every city has a personality that reflects its history, diversity, sense of place, and the values, needs, and dreams of its residents. Traditions, neighborhoods, weather, schools, leadership, businesses, parks, housing, events, and activities contribute to how people experience a community.

A city’s personality is shaped by how people see, feel, and connect to cultural life.
Culture is expressed in many ways—through art, music, theatre, dance and film—also in food, architecture, media, and new ideas—and most importantly through informed and engaged citizens.

Communities around the country understand that culture matters, because it reflects their unique heritage, contributes to a sense of place, provides opportunities to connect, offers learning and creative expression for all, and attracts the tourists, enterprise, and talent essential for economic growth.

How Was our Planning Process Organized?
After receiving grants from the Knight Foundation in December 2007, the Bradenton Cultural and Business Alliance (BCBA) hired nationally-recognized cultural planner Bill Bulick to organize the Realize Bradenton cultural planning process and the Manatee Chamber Foundation commissioned an economic impact study to gauge the financial impact of the arts and culture in Manatee County.
The cultural master planning process in 2008-09 produced a 10-year plan to leverage arts, culture, and heritage to build economic development, cultural tourism, and civic engagement. Realize Bradenton, Inc. was formed in summer 2009 to implement key plan elements in conjunction with the Bradenton Downtown Development Authority and other partners in the business, education, cultural and civic sectors. In September 2009, Johnette Isham was appointed Executive Director of the non-profit organization.