Providence and WaterFire are linked for the next 20 years thanks to a lease deal that is as good for the city as it is for the nonprofit.
City Councilwoman Jo-Anne Ryan was right to call the city’s purchase of the WaterFire Arts Center and $1-a-year lease deal an investment, rather than a bailout.
WaterFire has been struggling financially since the pandemic, needing a $650,000 line of credit in 2023 just to meet payroll. But its financial and artistic contributions to the city have never wavered.
It draws roughly 1 million visitors annually and generates an estimated $114 million a year in local spending. Hotels, restaurants and entertainment venues all benefit.
For WaterFire to survive the full 20-year lease deal, it will need to operate in the black. And that will require fundraising that is less reliant on big sponsorships.
It also plans to expand full lightings from six this year to at least eight next summer.
City leaders deserve credit for recognizing that helping WaterFire is an investment in both the nonprofit and the community it serves.