Atlanta has the most arts-related business per capita nationwide, but what about funding?

• COURTESY ELEVATE
• Elevate: Art Above Underground was an ambitious, two-month-long public arts exhibition centered around Upper Alabama and Peachtree Street downtown and backed by Atlanta’s Office of Cultural Affairs last fall.

Yesterday, the City of Atlanta sent out the press release: “Atlanta Home to Most Arts Related Business Per Capita in America,” up from the No. 4 position last year. According to a study by Americans for the Arts’ Creative Industries research project:
The city of Atlanta has the highest number of arts-related businesses per capita among the 100 largest cities in the United States and the second highest percentage of arts-related employees per capita in the country. ... According to Creative Industries, Atlanta is home to 3,573 arts-related businesses that employ 22,826 people. Last year, Atlanta ranked fourth highest in the number of arts-related businesses per capita out of the 100 largest cities in the United States.

In terms of counties, the metro area also had a good showing with Fulton County ranking fourth in the nation for business per-capita and third for number of arts-related jobs in the nation, while DeKalb ranked 10th and 21st in the respective categories. It’s great news, if not entirely surprising. In a 2011 column, Creative Loafing contributor Cinque Hicks pointed out that

A casual look around Atlanta reveals that after years of deep freeze, more arts projects are springing up in the city than any time in recent history. A groundswell of new arts organizations is enlivening Atlanta from the bottom up. Scarcely a week goes by that some new arts production group, some new publication, festival or financial support vehicle isn’t announcing that they’ve arrived on the scene.

Even Mayor Reed noted in the release, “The rankings don’t surprise me because many wonderful arts organizations flourish in the metropolitan Atlanta region. But this report does confirm that the arts are a vital component of Atlanta’s economy. And it supports my belief that great cities have great art. Thriving cities offer an outstanding quality of life, and the arts are a crucial component of a city’s soul.”

Which raises the question: Where does Atlanta rank in per capita funding to local arts agencies?