The six-member Board of Directors of the non-profit Jersey City Arts Council says it supports Mayor Fulop’s proposal to create an offshoot of Paris’s Centre Pompidou in Journal Square. According to the controversial proposal announced by the mayor two weeks ago, the developer of 808 Pavonia Ave., KRE, would receive a 30-year tax abatement in exchange for creation of a 100,000 sq. ft. space for the museum. By one estimate, the abatement would result in a loss of $180 million in revenue to the city. The administration estimates that in year one, the museum’s operating budget will surpass $21 million and rise to $27 million by year ten.In a press release yesterday the JCAC’s Board said “The addition of a renowned and collaborative art institution such as the Pompidou, with its proximity to the PATH terminal and newly renovated Loew’s Theatre, will not only help to revitalize this area as an arts district for Jersey City, but also has the potential to transform it into a tourist destination for the entire Tri-State region and beyond.”“Investing in the arts is never a quick payoff, but it changes the entire environment; creating connections, challenging ideas, providing beauty, and expanding potential. We believe that Centre Pompidou x Jersey City will be an asset to our city and community.”The JCAC works closely with the Fulop administration and pursuant to a memorandum of understanding, receives 10% of monies generated by the Arts & Culture Trust Fund Tax to administer the Individual Artists Fellowship (IAF) grants from the Arts & Culture Trust Fund.In other work, the JCAC collaborated with the City to develop the Cultural Asset Map in 2017 and helped create the Jersey City Poet Laureate position in 2018 and manages the selection process for that role biennially.Today, nineteen Jersey City arts organizations and arts professionals announced their opposition to the Pompidou plan and launched a petition drive on change.org.The post Six-Member Jersey City Arts Council Board Says it Supports Pompidou appeared first on Jersey City Times.