Operating Support Grant

The board reviews operations at every meeting. At this phase in EHST's lifespan, we are focused on financial results. We track attendance for each movie and event and are able to identify those that are the biggest draws. The measurable outcome best described by our board-level reviews is this: ? EHST will operate in a financially sustainable manner. Programming is driven by our mission and vision statements, which may be translated into these measurable outcomes: ? EHST will offer a variety of movies and cinematic events. ? EHST will make its venue available to community groups for performances and other events. ? EHST will produce special live events to broaden its public offering. Programming both movies and special events is tricky because first-run movies have exclusive use and extended run requirements that cannot be met if special events are also on the schedule. The theater manager attends all board and committee meetings, making feedback ongoing and informal. Our constituents include audiences, artists, and community groups. Attendance is the primary tool for evaluating whether our programs are meeting the needs of audiences, which include permanent residents, seasonal residents, and visitors. Our audiences are growing, which tells us that we are meeting the needs of our audiences. By observation, we can see that different types of events attract different audiences. Just as different types of movies attract different audiences, our special events attract different audiences from movies. We feel we are serving our constituents best if we are giving everyone in our community something of value. We evaluate the value of our venue to artists by the number of artists and arts groups that want to perform here, and by their feedback. The number of requests for use of our venue for performances is growing, indicating that we are meeting the needs of artists. One band told us our green room was the best they had been in. Similarly, we evaluate how well we are meeting the needs of community groups by the number of requests we receive from these groups to offer special events in our venue. Community groups include performing groups, bands, schools and others as well as groups that seek to educate the public on topics like healthy eating, mental health, and missing indigenous women. As these requests grow, we are satisfied that we are meeting the needs of community groups of various types.Movie ticket prices here are only $5. We know that income is seasonal for a significant portion of our residents, and that median income is lower here than in other parts of the state. We want our ticket prices to be affordable for families, and to make it possible for more people to go to the movies, and to attend more often. Rent for our venue is kept low to make it accessible to community organizations. Our goal is not to make money on special events, but to cover our costs including some portion of opportunity costs. For those renting our facility, we provide ticketing and local advertising in print, on social media, and through our e-newsletter in addition to posters and our marquee on Ely's main street. The number and variety of community groups that have sponsored special events at our venue attest to our approachability and accessibility. Ticket prices for most locally-produced special events range from free to $15 for adults, rarely going above that mark. This demonstrates that community groups do not need to charge excessive ticket prices to use our facility. EHST's services and programs provide a public benefit to the people of Ely and our tourism-based economy. We are offering local and seasonal residents a variety of arts experiences, and giving visitors an additional entertainment option. Our special offerings bring people to Ely from a wide area, and while they are here, they eat in Ely restaurants, shop in local retail stores, and occasionally stay in hotels, benefiting the local economy. EHST provides a public benefit to Minnes