Funding for N.Y. arts cut, but slightly

NEW YORK -- It could have been worse. A lot worse.\nBudget cuts for museums, concert halls and other cultural institutions in the city were serious, but not as serious as anticipated, officials said.\nThe city's Department of Cultural Affairs funding was down by $1.6 million over a year ago, forcing some popular sights to shorten their hours of operation. But the amount when the fiscal year began July 1 was higher than the $94 million cut initially proposed in April.\n"The original cuts that were proposed were a disaster ... All things being equal, we came out of this budget cycle OK," said Karen Brooks Hopkins, president of the Brooklyn Academy of Music.\nHopkins is also chairwoman of the Cultural Institutions Group, a consortium of 34 city-funded institutions on city-owned property.\nKate Levin, the cultural affairs commissioner, said the city was able to stave off more severe cuts because of financial aid from the state and federal governments.\nHopkins and other officials said the financial picture is far from rosy.\n"It can't get any tighter. We don't want the budget to be cut any further than it has been already," said Ron Kavanaugh, spokesman for the Bronx Museum of the Arts.\nThe Department of Cultural Affairs' budget is $118.8 million for the fiscal year that began July 1, down from $120.4 million in the previous year. The reductions come on top of cuts made last year, Hopkins said.\nThe Brooklyn Museum of Art will be closed for two weeks in August, for the first time in about a decade, to curb expenses. The American Museum of the Moving Image in Queens is cutting back on the days it's open. Other museums have postponed exhibits or are taking their time in filling positions.\n"Everybody is implementing a version of the disaster plan," Hopkins said. "Measures will still be taken."\nOrganizations are looking ahead with some concern, hoping that a budget review in November won't result in funds being stripped. They are heartened by Mayor Michael Bloomberg's personal dedication to the arts, as well as other city officials who seem to recognize their importance.\n"I am cautiously optimistic ... that these numbers will stick," said Rochelle Slovin, director of the American Museum of the Moving Image.\nBecause the cuts weren't as deep as feared, she said her museum will be able to continue its education programming in the fall, and she'll be able to hire a new director of education.\nGiven the state of the economy, Levin said, "to be able to be a steady funder is really quite an extraordinary achievement"