The San Diego County Board of Supervisors will consider a proposal to use county funding to bolster the region's arts and culture scene on Wednesday.
If passed, the initiative would invest millions into the arts, especially focused on diverse and underserved communities, the supervisors said. This comes as the city of San Diego continues its budget process, where Mayor Todd Gloria's proposed fiscal year 2027 budget would slash all arts and culture grants, to the tune of nearly $12 million.
"Our residents are hungry for these arts programs in so many communities," said Lawson-Remer, chair of the San Diego County Board of Supervisors. "The proposal includes up to $2.75 million in total funding, with $2.25 million in ongoing annual investments, to launch and sustain everything from an artist grant program, to investments in the Black Arts and Culture District, to an artist space grant program and a binational creative economy investment, and artist in residence program."
San Diego isn't the only government entity proposing to roll back arts funding as grants and other sources from Washington, D.C. begin to dry up.
"Too often our black, brown and immigrant neighborhoods have been overlooked," said Montgomery Steppe, the board's vice chair. "Arts and culture are not optional — they are foundational to a thriving, inclusive San Diego County. Today, we are making the choice to move that vision forward."
Key components of the proposed initiative include:
— Artist Grant Program ($1 million annually): Direct, low-barrier funding for individual artists, prioritizing underserved communities and supporting both emerging and established creatives;
— Artist-in-Residence Program ($250,000 annually): Placement of local artists within county departments to address public challenges through "creative, community-informed" approaches;
— Artist Space Grant Program ($500,000 annually): Expanding access to affordable creative spaces, including county-owned properties for public arts programming;
— Binational Creative Economy Investment ($250,000 annually): Strengthening cross-border arts and cultural collaboration in the San Diego- Baja California region;
— Arts and Cultural District Designation Program: Formal recognition and support for "culturally rich areas" across the county, with a focus on historically underfunded communities;
— Black Arts and Culture District Investment ($500,000 one-time): Supporting infrastructure, programming and economic development in nine blocks within the San Diego community of Encanto.
Supervisor Jim Desmond, who represents the northernmost portion of the county, said the proposal would turn the county's coffers into the city of San Diego's personal ATM. He said the city needed to right its own ship before the county would subsidize the arts.
"New staff. New grant programs. New designations. And a sizable chunk of it headed straight into the city of San Diego," Desmond wrote to supporters. "Let me remind you what the city of San Diego looks like right now. Streets that flood because storm drains went uncleaned for years. A budget deficit so deep they're closing libraries and rec centers. Homeless encampments the city refuses to enforce against. A downtown most families won't visit after dark.
"When the floods hit Southcrest and Mountain View, who showed up? The county. We opened the shelters. We cut the checks. We bailed the city out because the city couldn't do its job. Now my colleagues want us to do it again. This time with $2.75 million pulled out of the same General Fund that pays for our deputies, our fire prep, our mental health beds, and our roads in North County."
Arts leaders, however, said the funding could be the step needed to preserve programs.
"Today's investment signals that the county recognizes and values the power of diverse voices across the arts sector," said Gaidi Finnie, executive director of the African American Museum of Fine Arts. "The Black Arts and Culture District stands as a vital hub for cultural expression and creative enterprise, and this investment affirms the county's commitment to advancing arts and culture in an inclusive and meaningful way."
According to the supervisors, the proposal also includes efforts to work with philanthropies, advocate for expanded arts funding and establish the county as a designated Local Arts Agency through the California Arts Council.
"San Diego ART Matters and the broader artist community commend the county's long-overdue historic investment in the arts," said Bob Lehman, executive director of San Diego ART Matters. "This initiative transforms passion into purposeful, strategic action — placing the creative economy at the table of our region's future."
The Board of Supervisors is scheduled to vote on the proposal at 1 p.m. Wednesday.
