The Earlville Opera House is urging area residents to submit written letters for the Joint Legislative Public Hearing on February 26 requesting funding for the New York State arts sector. (Submitted photo)

EARLVILLE - As the 2026 New York State budget is being developed, Earlville Opera House (EOH) urges the public to support the below requests by the New York State arts sector and EOH by submitting a written letter for the February 26 Joint Legislative Public Hearing in Albany to: wamchair@nyassembly.gov and financechair@nysenate.gov, no later than February 26, 2 p.m.

Please use the following information and add your own reasons for why the arts are important to you and add your own name at the bottom:

Dear Honorable Leaders, we urge you to:

1.) Fund the New York State Council on the Arts (NYSCA) in the amount of $200 million for fiscal year 2026.
This 14% increase over FY25 will strengthen NYSCA’s internal operations while providing critical funding to aid localities throughout the state. It will assist with uniting the NYS arts field more cohesively for greater efficiency and artistic and economic impact centralized under NYSCA’s leadership.

NYSCA sustains, fosters, and advances the rights of all New Yorkers to experience the vital contributions arts make to our communities, education, economic development, and quality of life, thus solidifying and preserving the rich cultural heritage New York is known for. The arts were integral in re-starting the NYS economy after the pandemic, and we are now asking for reinvestment in NYSCA at a pivotal time for the arts, arts administration, and on behalf of all New Yorkers.

Arts are a vital part of New York State’s economy, contributing $143.8 billion annually to our economy, employing over half a million people and accounting for 7.6% of the Gross State product. Investment in NYSCA is making a commitment to ensure the arts continue to strengthen New York’s economy, foster parity, and build community, which are the foundation of civilization and needed now more than ever.

2.) Continue Earlville Opera House’s direct NYS line item in the amount of $200,000. This is solely to sustain operating and multi-arts public programming for our rural 1892 National Landmark Theater serving communities throughout Central New York and the Southern Tier. This funding excludes regrant dollars which we hope to administer into our tri-county service area of Broome, Chenango, and Otsego Counties under NYSCA’s direction if the agency is funded at the $200 million level.

EOH has a dual mission to enrich the region through music and arts while preserving its treasured National Landmark for future cultural use. EOH spans three decades as an anchor for the Village of Earlville, offering programs of cultural, educational, and historical significance represented though visual and performing arts programs; rotating gallery exhibitions; three live performance series; arts workshops; and classes and arts education opportunities. EOH is on the National Register of Historic Places (1973).

After the pandemic, EOH experienced a rise in competition from new area breweries, restaurants, and others offering music, spirits, meals, and air conditioning, things we do not have, thus making sustainability for this “historic gem and grand ole dame of CNY” unpredictable, along with the jobs and economic activity it creates.

This 133-year-old landmark represents only a handful of original opera houses throughout NYS, and is only one of many in the nation that retains its original horseshoe balcony. Operating support from NYS is critical to the sustainability of EOH in real time as it represents the cultural legacy of New York.

EOH activities contribute to visitor spending in Chenango County, which produced $44,000,000 in 2023. This is significant for an impoverished and agriculture-based county with a poverty rate of 14.3%. Visitor spending generated $2.7 million in county tax revenue, lessening the burden on residents.

Keeping EOH open is vital to sustain our role as an economic driver and focal point for rural community gathering and historic preservation, which helps define the cultural heritage of NYS. EOH cannot continue our shared legacy without this support.

-Information provided by the Earlville Opera House