Standing With Our Arts Community

To our artists, cultural organizations, educators, creative businesses, and friends:

Following the recent vote by the Pinellas County Board of County Commissioners to eliminate County funding for Creative Pinellas, we want to speak directly to you—with deep gratitude and clarity about what comes next.

First and foremost, thank you. Your emails, phone calls, texts, and testimony last night mean everything. You reminded the community that the arts are not a luxury; they are part of Pinellas County’s identity, economy, and success.

While we are disappointed by the Commission’s decision, our mission as it stands remains unchanged: to serve Pinellas County’s amazing and talented cultural community and to elevate the role that the art created here plays in the lives of our residents and visitors.

We are:

• Assessing the immediate and longer-term impacts to Creative Pinellas, our galleries, and our programs. We will communicate decisions as quickly and transparently as possible.
• We will shortly be in direct contact with affected grantees and partners.
• We are exploring possible paths forward and will keep you as informed as possible.

No single vote (or 5 votes) can erase the creativity, resilience, and care this community shows every day. Your support has strengthened our resolve to remain part of an arts ecosystem that is collaborative, accessible, and worthy of Pinellas County.

From all of us at Creative Pinellas—thank you for standing with us. Thank you for supporting us. And thank you for your role in creating an arts community we are all lucky to be a part of.