Kansas City, MO – JULY 12, 2011 – Today, the Arts Council of Metropolitan Kansas City,
in partnership with the Downtown Council of Kansas City, Missouri, announced they will
receive an Our Town grant from the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA), one of only 51
grants awarded nationwide. The Arts Council and Downtown Council will receive $200,000 to
contribute to the restoration of the Boone Theater in the Historic Jazz District at 18th & Vine.

Our Town is the NEA’s latest investment in creative placemaking, through which partners from
both public and private sectors come together to strategically shape the social, physical, and
economic character of a neighborhood, town, city, or region around arts and cultural activities.

The NEA grant will support the predevelopment, design and community planning phases of
the restoration of the 89-year-old Boone Theater, which is listed on both the Kansas City and
National Registers of Historic Places. The long-abandoned building has been boarded up since
the 1950s.

The restoration and redevelopment of the historic Boone Theater – a $2.5 million project – is
being undertaken with the goal of creating a new home for Folk Alliance International, a non-
profit cultural organization presently based in Memphis, Tennessee, that fosters and promotes
traditional, contemporary, and multicultural folk music and dance and related performing arts.

The Downtown Council is the official community based non-profit developer of the district
under contract with the Jazz District Redevelopment Corporation and will serve as the Project
Manager, overseeing all facets of the community planning process, facilities use, design
studies, fiscal management, and restoration facilitation.

The Boone Theater project has the support of the City of Kansas City Missouri; the Municipal
Art Commission of Kansas City, Missouri; the Jazz District Redevelopment Corporation; the
American Jazz Museum; and the Folk Alliance International.

National Endowment for the Arts Chairman Landesman said, “Communities across our country
are using smart design and leveraging the arts to enhance quality of life and promote their
distinctive identities. In this time of great economic upheaval, Our Town provides communities
an opportunity to reignite their economies.”

“The project is designed to strengthen the existing arts and cultural district by transforming a
blighted, vacant space, which currently separates critical venues from each other, into a vibrant
cultural center that provides continuous programming in coordination with other live music
presenters in the district,” said Bill Dietrich, president and CEO of the Downtown Council.
“Having the headquarters of Folk Alliance International in the restored Boone Theater would
be a synergistic addition that would invigorate and expand the existing cultural scene in the Jazz
District.”

“The Our Town Grant program is a terrific endeavor and we believe that our request is a great
example of a cooperative effort with a worthy purpose,” said Greg Carroll, president and CEO
of the American Jazz Museum. “The grant will help to improve the quality of life in the Historic
18th & Vine District and revitalize the local economy.”

“This project is an investment in the continuing revitalization of the 18th and Vine district,” said
Arts Council President and CEO Harlan Brownlee. “The arts play a meaningful and significant
role in the building of community. When the arts sector works in partnership with community
development organizations, we are part of the solution needed for a neighborhood, a city, or a
region. Artists and arts organizations are immersed in the basic building blocks of community
development; creating value, improving neighborhoods, and engaging the general public.”

“The restored Boone Theater will be a perfect home for a creative center and the North American
Folk Music & Dance Alliance would be a welcome addition to our growing community,” said
Denise Gilmore, president and CEO of the Jazz District Redevelopment Corp.

The theater is named in honor of John “Blind” Boone, who died in 1927. Mr. Boone
was a renowned African-American concert pianist whose music bridged folk and ragtime
traditions. The renovation of his namesake, a 45,000-square-foot theater with a seating capacity
of 300, would add another significant performing arts venue and cultural organization to
augment and solidify the heart of the district.

“The community planning process supported by this grant will engage the district’s cultural
institutions, residents and businesses on the design and use of the space and how its activities can
be programmed to help achieve existing community goals,” Dietrich said.

The Our Town grant of $200,000 will be applied to a pre-construction budget of $423,000 which
covers community planning and predevelopment work including the fulfillment of historic
restoration prerequisites, facilities use planning and facility design. The current estimate for
total project costs for all phases of the restoration is $2.5 million, with funding expected from
corporate equity, foundation grants, local, state & federal incentive and bank financing.

About ArtsKC – The Arts Council of Metropolitan Kansas City:

The Arts Council supports and advances the arts for the benefit of the Kansas City region.
The goals are achieved through various programs and services which focus on three primary
strategies:
• Increased funding for the arts and cultural initiatives from diversified and sustainable
sources.
• Increasing community awareness of the arts and culture and the impact on quality of life
issues in our community.
• Establishing the arts as an integral part of economic development and other key civic and
business initiatives.

The Downtown Council of Kansas City is committed to creating a vibrant, diverse and
economically sustainable Downtown Kansas City, Missouri. As a private, nonprofit organization,
the Downtown Council has nearly 300 members representing Kansas City’s leading businesses,
property owners, entrepreneurial companies, and arts, cultural and nonprofit organizations.

Greater Downtown Kansas City embraces a large and diverse set of neighborhoods. It extends
from the River District to the north; the West Bottoms and Westside on the west; the Historic
Jazz District at 18th & Vine on the east; and south to Martini Corner along 31st Street. Downtown
features the Central Business District, the burgeoning Convention District, the Sprint Center,
Power & Light District, the Crossroads Arts District, Crown Center, Union Station, Liberty
Memorial and, soon, the Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts.

The National Endowment for the Arts was established by Congress in 1965 as an independent
agency of the federal government. To date, the NEA has awarded more than $4 billion to support
artistic excellence, creativity, and innovation for the benefit of individuals and communities. The
NEA extends its work through partnerships with state arts agencies, local leaders, other federal
agencies, and the philanthropic sector