Project Information

Bid Title

American Rescue Plan Act Creative Training Incentive Program

Issuing Agency

City of Durham

Location

North Carolina

Published Date

Apr 16, 2026

Closing Date

May 7, 2026

Government Level

State & Local

Status

Closed

Ref. #

26-1059

Original Source

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Bid Documents

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Project Description

Bid Number:	26-1059
Bid Title:	American Rescue Plan Act Creative Training Incentive Program
Category:	Requests for Proposals/Qualifications and Services
Status:	Open

Description: **** 2 Pre Submittal Meetings date, times, via ZOOM:  Monday April 27, 2026, at 12:00 PM Tuesday April 28, 2026, at 6:00 PM 4/27/26 - Register in advance for this meeting: https://us06web.zoom.us/meeting/register/UGGMP_F3Qsm5fgFWtf7Kbw 4/28/26 - Register in advance for this meeting: https://us06web.zoom.us/meeting/register/UGGMP_F3Qsm5fgFWtf7Kbw **** **** RFI date, time, via Submittable:  Thursday May 7, 2026, by 3:00 PM Email to: Submittable (see RFI for the link) **** Publication Date/Time: 4/16/2026 8:00 AM Closing Date/Time: 5/7/2026 3:00 PM Contact Person: Rebecca Holmes [email protected] Related Documents: Request for Interest RFI_ARPA Creative Training Incentives

Attachment Preview

Request for Interest (RFI): American Rescue Plan Act

Creative Training Incentive Program

Date Issued: April 16, 2026

RFI Deadline to Apply: May 7, 2026

The City of Durham’s Cultural and Public Art Program (referred to as “City”) is seeking individuals and

organizations in the Arts and Cultural Sector (Artists, Creative Workers, Cultural and Creative Workers,

Non-profits, Businesses) (referred to as “Candidates”) to apply to participate in professional

development training courses. These courses are designed to strengthen the capacity of Durham’s arts

and cultural community and support the implementation of key initiatives outlined in the Durham

Cultural Roadmap. Selected candidates who are eligible will receive an incentive of $5,000 for their

participation, based on reporting and compliance with the course programs. This reporting will require

the selected Candidate to comply with the federal government’s American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA)

guidelines, the City and Durham County’s reporting requirements.

These training courses will support the growth and development of the arts sector for individuals, non-

profit organizations and businesses, including the following topics:

Group I: Small Business, Individual Artists, For-Profit & Non-Profits Arts and Cultural Organizations

• Marketing for Organizations

• Grant Writing for Organizations, Events, and Festivals

• Finance for Organizations

• Development for Organizations

Group II: Practicing Artist and Artist’s Businesses focused

• Artists’ Pricing

• Artist Development & Grants

• Artists Marketing

1

20. Project Manager and Contact with City; Questions about this RFI.................................................................. 3

DESCRIPTION OF PROJECT AND NATURE OF RFI........................................................................................................ 3

30. Project .............................................................................................................................................................. 3

31. Site Description ................................................................................................................................................ 4

32. Project Background .......................................................................................................................................... 4

33. Community Engagement.................................................................................................................................. 5

40. Scope of Work .................................................................................................................................................. 5

50. Project Budget and Compensation Amount .................................................................................................... 7

60. Definitions in this RFI: City, RFI, Proposal, Candidate, Contractor, Should ..................................................... 7

70. Contract ............................................................................................................................................................ 7

70.1 Interpretation and translation services ......................................................................................................... 8

100. Insurance Requirements of Selected Candidate(s) ........................................................................................ 8

110. Discretion of the City...................................................................................................................................... 8

SCHEDULE................................................................................................................................................................... 9

120. Proposed Schedule ......................................................................................................................................... 9

140. Deadline to Receive Submissions ................................................................................................................... 9

GETTING MORE INFORMATION ON THE PROJECT AND RFI PROCESS ..................................................................... 10

150. Questions...................................................................................................................................................... 10

151. Pre-submittal Meeting ................................................................................................................................. 10

EVALUATION CRITERIA ............................................................................................................................................. 10

180. Evaluation Criteria ........................................................................................................................................ 10

190. Call for Artists/RFI Eligibility ......................................................................................................................... 11

200. Project Partners............................................................................................................................................ 12

240. RFI Submission RequirementsThe RFI submissions shall include the following: ......................................... 13

300. Candidate to Bear Expense; No Claims against City .................................................................................... 15

310. State Treasurer’s lists regarding Iran and Boycott of Israel ......................................................................... 15

320. Notice Under the Americans with Disabilities Act ....................................................................................... 15

330. Values of City of Durham regarding Treatment of Employees of Contractors ............................................ 15

Sample Artist Contract and Non-Collusion Affidavit................................................................................................ 17

2

10. Date of RFI

Date Issued: April 16, 2026

RFI Deadline to Apply: May 7, 2026

20. Project Manager and Contact with City; Questions about this RFI

Direct questions and concerns to:

Att: Rebecca Holmes

Cultural & Public Art Program

General Services Department

2011 Fay Street

Durham, NC 27704

(919) 560-4197, ext. 21245

Rebecca.Holmes@DurhamNC.gov

If you have concerns about this RFI that you believe are not being addressed by the project manager, please

contact:

Att: Jaci Field

Community Programs

General Services Department

2011 Fay Street

Durham, NC 27704

(919) 560-4197

Jaci.Field@DurhamNC.gov

DESCRIPTION OF PROJECT AND NATURE OF RFI

30. Project

The City of Durham’s Cultural and Public Art Program (referred to as “City”) is seeking individuals and organizations

in the Arts and Cultural Sector (Artists, Creative Workers, Cultural and Creative Workers, Non-profits, Businesses)

(referred to as “Candidates”) to apply to participate in professional development training courses. These courses

are designed to strengthen the capacity of Durham’s arts and cultural community and support the implementation

of key initiatives outlined in the Durham Cultural Roadmap. Selected candidates that are eligible will receive an

incentive of $5,000 for their participation, based on reporting and compliance with the course programs. This

reporting will require the selected Candidate to comply with the federal government’s American Rescue Plan Act

(ARPA) guidelines, and the City and Durham County’s reporting requirements.

Applicants must be residents of Durham County, North Carolina, or operate an arts-related business or nonprofit

organization

based

in

Durham

County.

Theses training courses will support the growth and development of the arts sector for individuals, non-profit

organizations and businesses, including topics:

3

Group I: Small Business, Individual Artists, For-Profit & Non-Profits Arts and Cultural Organizations

• Marketing for Organizations

• Grant Writing for Organizations, Events, and Festivals

• Finance for Organizations

• Development for Organizations

Group II: Practicing Artists and Artist’ Businesses

• Artists’ Pricing

• Artist Development & Grants

• Artists Marketing

The selected Candidates will work to:

• Actively participate in the assigned professional development training sessions and complete all course

components. These courses will require participants to develop or refine concrete tools such as

marketing strategies, grant proposals, financial plans, pricing structures, and/or development plans

relevant to their work, based on the course group.

• Describe how the skills and knowledge gained from the trainings has strengthened their artistic practice,

organization, or creative business.

• Submit required reports and documentation demonstrating participation, learning outcomes, and

application of course material in order to receive the incentive payment. This reporting will require the

selected Candidate to comply with the federal government’s American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA)

guidelines, the City and Durham County.

For the project website, visit: https://www.durhamnc.gov/5526/Creative-Training-Incentive-Program-ARPA.

For the application portal, visit: https://keepdurhambeautiful.submittable.com/submit

31. Location Description

Training will be held virtually and in-person at locations to be determined by the course instructors. Most

training will occur virtually and may be held at City of Durham facilities.

32. Project Background

Durham Cultural Roadmap

The City and County partnered to create the Durham Cultural Roadmap—a plan based on residents' needs that

will guide Durham's arts and cultural community through investment, resources and creative programming. The

Cultural Roadmap planning process continues into the final phase with guidance from the Cultural Roadmap

Planning Group (CRPG), our cultural planning consultants, and local artists called the Creative Engagement Team.

The Durham Cultural Roadmap process has identified, through engagement, the themes that will impact the

sector. A major theme of the plan includes cultivating leadership, with the goal to strengthen and support creative

leaders at every level, from emerging artists to established organizations, ensuring long-term growth and capacity.

4

The Durham Cultural Master Plan (PDF), was approved by the City Council and Board of County Commissioners to

advance numerous cultural goals and strategies over a fifteen-year period, spanning from 2004 to 2019. Based on

the City, the County, and the Durham Cultural Advisory Board's work from 2019 to 2022 to launch a new planning

process, the Durham Cultural Advisory Board developed the vision and mission below. On October 3, 2022, the

Durham City Council and the Durham County Board of Commissioners entered a joint agreement to govern the

development of the new Durham Cultural Roadmap. The City's Cultural & Public Art Program staff provides daily

management of the plan, in partnership with Durham County's Public Art Program staff. To learn more about the

Durham Cultural Roadmap, visit www.CreativeDurham.Org.

Funding

The funding for this project is provided through the American Rescue Plan Act. This act provides U.S. cities and

counties with $130.2 billion through December 31, 2024. The City of Durham will receive more than $50M as part

of this allocation. These funds will be used to help offset revenue losses resulting from the pandemic, as well as

fund other community needs. Specifically, these funds may be used to: Replace lost public sector revenue, using

this funding to provide government services to the extent of the reduction in revenue experienced due to the

pandemic.

The funding provided through the County and City’s agreement will be utilized to support large and small local

arts and cultural nonprofits, businesses, venues, and independent artists through grants, training, planning, and

marketing initiatives to help restore jobs, reopen venues, and restart programming.

To learn more about the City’s ARPA program, visit the City’s website here:

https://www.durhamnc.gov/4529/American-Rescue-Plan

40. Scope of Work

The services and obligations that will be required from the Candidate during the contract period include, but are

not necessarily limited to:

• Working with the training instructors and City and County staff to complete the courses and

reporting requirements.

• Attending and actively participating in all required training courses.

• Completing the training and reporting requirements from the Federal Government, including

narrative and financial reporting.

Proposed course descriptions:

Group I: Small Business, Individual Artists, For-Profit & Non-Profits Arts and Cultural Organizations

Marketing

Staff members of small arts organizations will learn practical marketing fundamentals designed for teams with

limited time and resources. This course is intended for organizations that do not have a dedicated marketing staff

or large advertising budgets. Participants will explore effective approaches to social media and email marketing,

with an emphasis on high-impact, cost-effective strategies and tools that help streamline communication and

outreach.

5

Commodity Codes

• NAICS 541611Administrative Management and General Management Consulting Services
• NAICS 541690Other Scientific and Technical Consulting Services
• NAICS 611430Professional and Management Development Training

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