Liepāja City Council adopts a decision on establishing the Liepāja 2027 Foundation

On Thursday, 26 January, the members of the Liepaja City Council passed a decision to establish a foundation “Liepāja 2027 Foundation” in charge of the project “European Capital of Culture 2027” programme implementation and the organisation of the 400th anniversary of the city of Liepāja in 2025.

The term of action of the organisation “Liepāja 2027 Foundation” shall cover the period from 2023 to 2028. Today’s Council meeting also approved the Foundation’s statutes, which set out the rights and duties of the founder and board members, the supervision principles, the allocation, and use of funding, etc.

The legal form of a foundation as the most appropriate organisational structure was included in Liepāja’s bid for the title of European Capital of Culture 2027, which was elaborated in two selection rounds since 15 October 2020, based on the opinions of the cultural sector, various organisations, representatives of municipalities, tourism and city development authorities, industry professionals from across different fields, as well as other European Capitals of Culture in a number of countries and the experience of the Rīga 2014 team.

During the period from 2023 to 2028, the multidisciplinary programme of the European Capital of Culture 2027 will contribute to the socio-economic growth of the city, draw international attention, stimulate tourist flows, develop the creative industries sector, implement cooperation projects with the public, private and non-governmental sectors, and attract financial resources from various financial sources, including European Union funds and the private sector.

The members of the council also agreed to allocate EUR 300 000 of Liepāja City Municipality funding to the purpose of the Foundation for its operation in 2023. Additional funding will be approved each year until the end of the Foundation’s mandate, and will be determined on the basis of the year’s events and activities plan, funding allocated by the Ministry of Culture, available funding from various funds, sponsorships, etc.

The Department of Culture of the Liepāja City Municipality will handle the documentation related to the establishment of the Foundation and the start of its operation, as well as the necessary documentation to be submitted to the Register of Enterprises.

According to the decision of the City Council, an open recruitment procedure for the positions of the Chairperson of the Board and two members of the Board will be organised by the Executive Director of the Liepāja City Municipality.

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