This article was originally posted on SteinbachOnline.com: https://www.steinbachonline.com/articles/steinbach-arts-council-gets-30k-grant-increase-from-city Steinbach City Council has given preliminary approval for a $30,000 increase to the annual grant for the Steinbach Arts Council (SAC) starting in 2026.  Deputy Mayor Michael Zwaagstra says the decision reflects both the growth of SAC programs and council’s desire to recognize the value of the organization’s work in the community.  “We did take a look at the history and the work that’s being done by the Arts Council,” Zwaagstra said. “And so we decided that it was the time, an appropriate time to increase their funding. Their funding had been frozen for several years, at least, in terms of what was coming from the City. And so in 2026, they will have a $30,000 increase on the net grant that they receive.”  He clarified that this funding is separate from the rent arrangement between the two parties. The City owns the building that houses SAC, charges rent, and then provides a grant to cover those rental costs.  “This is completely separate from that,” Zwaagstra explained. “You can think of this as the operating funding that we are giving. And this is a portion of the funding they get. But we felt that because of the hard work that the Arts Council is doing and the expansion and the programs that we’re seeing, we do want to make it clear that we support the Steinbach Arts Council and we value our partnership with them, and that’s why we have decided on the $30,000 increase for the upcoming year.”  SAC responds to funding boost  SAC Board Chair Taylor Brandt says the funding comes at an important time as the organization continues to expand programs and serve more people.  “We’ve had a really great relationship with the City of Steinbach for decades and decades, since really when we started, and the City owns our building,” said Brandt. “Over the past few years, we have seen an increase in our programs and in foot traffic and an increase in cost. And so this is really timely. As we are planning to grow even more, this is coming at a really good time to be able to help us get to that next level.”  Brandt explained that part of SAC’s mission is to ensure programs remain affordable and accessible to as many people as possible.  “This helps our operating budget as a whole and makes sure that we can have the facility that’s needed for the people that we are hosting,” Brandt said. “Making sure that all of our programs are accessible to a majority of people that are in the Steinbach and surrounding areas. So that’s what our operating budget goes towards as well as making sure that we’re able to subsidize to keep things affordable.”  Expansion through satellite programs  Looking ahead, Brandt says the increase will allow SAC to consider expanding programs beyond its downtown facility.  “It’s going to open up some of our doors that allows us to have some more satellite programs,” she said. “So not just programs that are run out of the Steinbach Arts Council building, but some satellite programs as we’ve started to see around the Mennonite Heritage Village and hopefully some other satellite programs that we’re able to run in different areas.”  She added that this growth also has the effect of opening doors to larger grant opportunities. With a bigger operating budget, it makes SAC eligible for more grant opportunities, Brandt explained. “Which is really exciting for the Steinbach Arts Council because we’re getting to be looked at as a non-for-profit at a new caliber, which is just getting us more eyes on the Steinbach Arts Council. As we are in the top 10 per cent of arts councils, of programs that are out of organizations that do what we do across Canada, we are among the 10 per cent.”  Strengthening community impact  SAC Executive Director David Klassen says the additional funding will support long-term sustainability.  “Everything we do is about community impact, and added funding will help us to ensure that we can sustain the level of programming we’ve built over the last few years,” Klassen said. “We’re excited to see how this will benefit all of our participants, allowing our community to thrive. We appreciate that the City of Steinbach sees the value in what we do for residents of Steinbach and surrounding communities.”  Long-standing partnership  For Brandt, the funding decision highlights the strong relationship between SAC and city leadership.  “Thank you so much to the City of Steinbach,” she said. “We have a great relationship with Mayor Earl Funk as well as all of the other councillors. And so we’re just really excited and very proud of that relationship.”  And Zwaagstra says, “We value our partnership with them,” he said. “That’s why we’ve decided on the $30,000 increase.”  The increase is part of Steinbach’s preliminary 2026 budget planning and will be finalized later this year. 

This article was originally published on TheCarillon.com: https://www.thecarillon.com/local/2025/09/21/growth-challenges-and-community-arts-expansion-at-steinbach-arts-council Steinbach Arts Council held its annual general meeting on Sept. 10 and executive director David Klassen said it was “a banner year” with people accessing programming that is expanding into the community. “We’re reaching more people,” said Klassen. “Our bursaries are expanding we’re able to continue running free programs really without limitation of imagination. So we’re excited to get more involved in that sort of thing.” SAC announced it had grown its revenue by about $10,000 hitting $1.06 million last year. Klassen said it was largely due to donations and sponsorships nearly doubling in the past two years. Financials show development income at $288,537; grants at $281,926; and art instruction income at $231,832. Operating expenses were largely taken by salaries and wages which topped up at $493,930; art instruction expenses $111,831; development expenses $104,118; and rent and leases $114,466. The annual report showed a deficit of $25,189. Klassen said the biggest challenge to the organization is space. Recently, SAC started offering some of its arts workshops in various locations in the city as there was a lack of available space at the Steinbach Cultural Arts Centre. The lease for SAC is up in 2027 and Klassen said so far the board is not looking to set up shop in a bigger building with more space. Registrations were up past pre-COVID levels from about 900 to the present amount of 2,000, which Klassen cites as a result of the merger with the Southeastern Manitoba Festival and a “craving for recreation of this sort.” The organization currently has 1,100 active memberships from families and individuals. Changes at SAC involved expanding visual arts classes, growing after school arts programs, and growing performing arts programs, language programs, and wellness programs. “On top of that, not necessarily related to membership, but there is a growing community of arts and culture groups, theater groups and other communities that rely on this building as a resource. We provide affordable rental space, and that is growing as well. So, all of all of those things add to a really unique and full list of classes that we’re able to offer,” said Klassen. The executive director noted that according to the Canada Revenue Agency, SAC ranks on “the top 10 percent of similar arts councils nationwide comparable in scope to councils in Mississauga (pop. 800,000) and London, Ontario (pop. 600,000).” “We’re in a group of 13 at the top 10 percent. So, there’s approximately 130 organizations that would run similar programming that would be called a service providing arts council.” Looking to the future, Klassen said SAC is looking at offering art and music therapy classes. “We love thinking creatively what’s going ahead. We have dreams of building programs that venture into the therapeutic arts that allow people to be more emotionally expressive and supported through arts forms. “So, music therapy and art therapy are things that we dream about and we think are very valuable to the to the health and wellbeing of our community and kids,” he said. A new executive was named during the meeting which saw Taylor Brandt as chair, Geoff Dilts as vice chair, Patrick Friesen as secretary, Meaghan Esau as finance chair, and as directors Kevin Froese and Marissa Wiebe. Chris Winkler was awarded SAC’s Member of the Year Award for his involvement with SAC productions, his volunteerism, and participation in programing.

The Steinbach Arts Council (SAC) is moving beyond its building as programs continue to grow and space becomes limited. Program coordinator Kristi Peters says the organization has reached full capacity, running more programs than ever before while balancing rentals, user groups, and special events. “Our building is bursting at the seams,” says Peters. “We have very full capacity basically 24/7. We continually want to expand our workshops, but we have no more space to do so. So this year we are really trying to focus on our satellite programming.” Three satellite locations this fall To meet growing demand, SAC is partnering with Rest Haven Care Home, Fernwood Place, and Mennonite Heritage Village (MHV) to host workshops. Peters says these spaces were chosen because of their accessibility and the strong partnerships already in place. “For places like Rest Haven and Fernwood, it’s a really good opportunity to provide programming directly to their residents,” she explains. “Some residents don’t have the mobility to leave their building, so this way they can take part right where they live.” Workshops include a Filipino Parol Christmas lantern-making class at MHV, Métis finger weaving at Fernwood, and a driftwood wind chime workshop at Rest Haven. Peters adds that SAC hopes to expand to even more community locations in the future. New developments at SAC Along with satellite programming, SAC is expanding its long-running Backyard Theatre Company by adding a musical theatre program. “This will highlight all the different skills kids can learn under a few different instructors,” says Cassandra Kornelsen, Manager of Community Programs at the Steinbach Arts Council. “There are no auditions—it’s about building skills, singing, dancing, and having fun.” Kornelsen says the new program will complement existing opportunities in Steinbach and provide another entry point for young performers. She notes that interest in theatre and musical programming is consistently strong in the community. Looking ahead Both Kornelsen and Peters say the main challenge for SAC is space, but it is a challenge they welcome. “We have some really good problems on our hands,” says Kornelsen. “The pottery program is exploding, culinary arts continues to grow, and now we’re planning ahead into next summer and fall to make sure we’re prepared.” SAC also keeps an ongoing list of local artists who express interest in teaching, which Kornelsen says helps keep programming fresh and community-driven. “The growth excites us,” she says. “It’s such a great feeling to see so many people come through the Steinbach Arts Council and to expand opportunities across the community.”