Urban Enhancement Trust Fund

	Capoeira Brazilian dancers performing at Downtown Albuquerque Arts Festival 2003. Photo by Brian Morris

The Urban Enhancement Trust Fund (UETF) is a public endowment created by the Albuquerque City Council in 1983 to fund both capital and cultural projects designed to enrich the cultural environment of Albuquerque. In 2004, the City Council amended the ordinance to provide that all funds available from the endowment should be directed to cultural projects. The ordinance also provides for an eleven-member citizens' committee called the UETF Committee that is responsible for establishing guidelines. The UETF Committee develops criteria for project selection for each two-year granting cycle and provides oversight for each funded project throughout the two years.

UETF is a two-year program with planning, application, review, and selection process accomplished simultaneously with the City's General Obligation Program / Decade Plan process. Unlike the G.O. Bond Program, UETF projects receive final approval from the City Council. For the 2007-2008 cycle, projects valued at just under $900,000 were approved.

Proposals for cultural services projects must be submitted by non-profit, tax-exempt 501(c) (3) organizations. The organization must be dedicated to enhancing Albuquerque's cultural vitality in the area of visual art, music, theater, dance, history or literature. All projects should advance the Albuquerque Cultural Plan and have a favorable economic or cultural impact on the city.

Projects funded in the past include: arts/cultural educational workshops at community centers, schools, senior centers, and other public venues; free performances, exhibits or cultural festivals; audio, video or electronic productions; oral histories, cultural research or plans; historical or literary publications or programs.

For more information about Albuquerque's Urban Enhancement Trust Fund, contact the Project Coordinator at (505) 768-3804.