STEINBACHONLINE: Steinbach Arts Council gets $30K grant increase from City

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.