Arts funding at Simi Valley center

I am writing this letter in response to the Jan. 4 letter written by Darby Shields to the Moorpark Acorn. Although I agree that the Simi Cultural Arts Center Foundation does provide a different pay schedule to nonprofit organizations who wish to rent the Simi Valley Cultural Arts Center, it in fact does not underwrite ARTS Youth Ensemble productions. The summer musical theater workshop presented by ARTS at the Cultural Arts Center pays the standard nonprofit rental for the facility use.

There are opportunities for outside corporate sponsorship which are made available for ARTS Youth Ensemble through the foundation, but they are specifically earmarked funds which partially subsidize children's programming.

I appreciate Mr. Shield's desire for the High Street Arts Center to provide opportunities for local arts programming, but in order for that to occur, it's my opinion that the arts center first become a community supported theater with an outstanding reputation for excellence, a path on which they are most certainly traveling. Jan Glasband Moorpark