The Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, with more than $200 million in net assets, “can do things like bid to build and run a new performance venue at The Banks,” writes Kevin Eigelbach on Tuesday (7/3) at Cincinnati television station WCPO. The orchestra’s subsidiary, Music and Events Management Inc. (MEMI), “provides the CSO with a revenue stream…. During the 2016-17 orchestra season, MEMI earned $3.6 million in revenue over expenses.… The nonprofit earns money by producing events at Riverbend Music Center, which the CSO has owned since its creation in 1984. Since 2011, MEMI has also managed the Taft Theater in downtown Cincinnati through a lease arrangement with the owners…. The CSO doesn’t own Music Hall, but pays rent for performances and rehearsals there.… In 2015, the orchestra raised $25 million to boost its endowment, which now stands at $168 million.” In 2009, the endowment fell to $56.2 million, but “the orchestra stemmed the flow of red ink by reducing operating costs…. [And] the late Louise Nippert, former co-owner of the Cincinnati Reds, helped out in December 2009 by donating $85 million to create a fund to support local musical arts. Decisions made then have helped the orchestra enjoy the good financial position it now has.”
Posted July 3, 2018
