The Big Apple’s cultural landscape got its biggest boost in nearly half a century.
On Sept. 30, BRIC, the Bronx Children’s Museum, the Louis Armstrong House Museum, the Noble Maritime Collection, and Pregones/Puerto Rican Travelling Theater joined New York City’s 34-member Cultural Institutions Group (CIG), marking the most significant expansion of the network since the 1970s.
Like all CIG members — which include the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Brooklyn Academy of Music — the new organizations are located on city-owned property. The group reflects a broad spectrum of cultural endeavors, from art and natural history museums to theaters, concert halls, performing arts centers, botanical gardens and zoos.
The expansion, one of the key commitments Mayor Eric Adams announced in his 2025 State of the City address in January, comes as cultural organizations nationwide face steep challenges from funding cuts. Officials say the move will provide long-term, stable support for New York’s cultural sector, making CIG — one of the city’s strongest and longest-running public-private partnerships — more reflective of the communities it serves. It will also help more organizations offer free and affordable programming for families.
Adams’ administration has also committed $3.1 billion for cultural institutions and libraries through a 10-year capital plan.
At a press conference at BRIC House in Downtown Brooklyn, Laurie Cumbo, commissioner of the city’s Department of Cultural Affairs, called the addition of the five organizations a “historic, once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.”
“Investing in culture means investing in strong, vibrant, resilient communities in thriving neighborhoods in a city that works for all of us and embraces all of us,” Cumbo said. “This is a generational investment on behalf of all New Yorkers, and this will pay dividends for generations to come.”
BRIC President Wes Jackson said arts and culture play a crucial role in fostering a “functional society” and that institutions like BRIC nurture artists and creators, amplifying their work and sharing their visions.
“Take us away and imagine what this city turns into. Watch the revenue dry up, watch mental health decline, watch safety decline; this is not just a playground. We are doing the work to keep the city together,” Jackson said.
Deputy Mayor Adolfo Carrión noted that with 93 days left in office, the Adams administration wanted the addition of the five institutions to “leave something great for the city and to the future generations that will pass through these spaces and continue their exploration, their discovery.”
“The arts are the glue that keeps this free, open democratic society intact,” Carrión said. “The members of the Cultural Institutions Group have always reflected the idea that culture is not a luxury; it is a public good. Culture is something for all New Yorkers.”
CIG Chair Coco Killingsworth welcomed the five institutions and said she looked forward to seeing them thrive.
“Being a CIG means that collectively it is our duty to weave the cultural fabric of this city together, in the hardest times, towards times of true abundance,” Killingsworth said.
In a statement, Mayor Adams emphasized the importance of ensuring the group reflected the city’s cultural diversity and that every borough benefited from the investment.
“When it comes to culture, there’s nowhere like New York. From iconic museums to legendary theaters, our city’s Cultural Institutions Group gives New Yorkers and tourists alike a safe, accessible place to spend time,” he said. “With this historic expansion, we’ll help even more cultural organizations provide affordable programming for families, good-paying jobs for New Yorkers, and safe spaces for young people to learn and stay off the streets.”
