Explanation
Background: This ordinance authorizes the City Clerk to enter into a grant agreement with Ghana Festival Ohio in support of their five-day event showcasing Ghanaian culture and showing support to Columbus’ sister city of Accra.
Ghana Festival Ohio seeks to preserve and promote the cultural heritage of people of African origin or ancestry. The organization is a non-profit that pursues these goals through cultural and artistic exhibitions and performances, dances, music, food, education, and interactive programming. It is also their goal to promote cultural tourism to enhance global diversity and promote cultural awareness and artistic visibility of the Western African Community in Ohio while creating the platform for socio-cultural, economic, business, and investment opportunities.
The grant will support Ghana Festival Ohio in bringing in international cultural performing troupes, international guest performing artists for music, and the rental of cultural performing drums and equipment, as well as some additional logistics rental and media needs.
Emergency Justification: Emergency action is requested so that purchases and deposits that must be made in advance of the August event can proceed as soon as possible.
Fiscal Impact: Funding is available within the Neighborhood Initiatives subfund.
Title
To authorize the City Clerk to enter into a grant agreement with Ghana Festival Ohio to support the GhanaFestOhio event; to authorize an appropriation and expenditure within the Neighborhood Initiatives subfund; and to declare an emergency. ($25,000.00)
Body
WHEREAS, Columbus City Council seeks to support to the celebration of Columbus as a diverse and welcoming city including for those of West African origin or ancestry; and
WHEREAS, Ghana Festival Ohio seeks to showcase Ghanaian culture through their flagship event of GhanaFestOhio this summer; and
WHEREAS, it is necessary to authorize the City Clerk to enter into a grant agreement with Ghana Festival Ohio to support the GhanaFestOhio event that promotes cultural tourism and artistic visibility for the Western African community in central Ohio, in an amount of up to $25,000.00; and
WHEREAS, an emergency exists in the usual daily operation of the City Clerk in that it is immediately necessary to transfer and appropriate funds so that purchases and deposits that must be made in advance of the August event can proceed as soon as possible; NOW, THEREFORE,
BE IT ORDAINED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF COLUMBUS:
SECTION 1. That the City Clerk is hereby authorized to enter into a grant agreement with Ghana Festival Ohio in an amount up to $25,000.00 for the purpose of supporting the GhanaFest event that promotes cultural tourism and artistic visibility for the Western African community in central Ohio.
SECTION 2. That the City Auditor is hereby authorized and directed to appropriate $25,000.00 in the Neighborhood Initiatives subfund, fund 1000, subfund 100018, to the City Clerk per the accounting codes in the attachment to this ordinance.
SECTION 3. That the expenditure of $25,000.00 or so much thereof as may be needed pursuant to the action authorized in SECTION 1 of this ordinance, is hereby authorized in the Neighborhood Initiatives subfund, fund 1000, subfund 100018 per the accounting codes in the attachment to this ordinance.
SECTION 4. That the City Auditor is authorized to make any accounting changes to revise the funding source for all contracts or contract modifications associated with this ordinance.
SECTION 5. That for the reasons stated in the preamble hereto, which is hereby made a part hereof, this ordinance is hereby declared to be an emergency measure and shall take effect and be in force from and after its passage and approval by the Mayor, or ten (10) days after passage if the Mayor neither approves nor vetoes the same.