Recently, the City of Peterborough made a decision to cut TTOKs Community Investment Grant operational funding from $15,000 in 2022 to $0 in 2023.

Without this funding, TTOK may be forced to close its doors and the city will lose a vital part of its artistic and cultural heritage.

The grant results send a message. This year, that message – on behalf of all ten councillors and the mayor – is that TTOK is worth zero dollars to the City. 

You can save this beloved institution and preserve the arts and culture of our city. Please sign this petition to show your support for TTOK and its appeal to Council. 

TTOK has been an integral part of the arts community in Peterborough for 10 years, providing a space for artists to create and showcase their work. It has been a hub for creativity, diversity, and inclusion, and has positively impacted the lives of countless individuals in Peterborough and beyond.

It is a cornerstone of the Peterborough community, with a ten-year track record of creating and presenting prolific original works. Many of these shows have been presented nationally and internationally, bringing the larger world a glimpse of Peterborough’s artistic richness. These works have garnered numerous prestigious awards and accolades, including Dora Mavor Awards, Audience Pick at the Chicago Fringe, Spirit of Vancouver Fringe, 4NNNN Toronto Fringe, among others.

Any community would be proud to nurture the calibre of artists TTOK attracts. TTOK artists have won Peterborough Arts Awards, the KM Hunter Artist Award, Best Character Nanaimo Fringe, and an author who has written several TTOK plays is a Governor General’s Literary Award finalist. 

City staff have not provided any explanation for the cut. TTOK’s mandate vision – expressed in their recent application – remains unchanged: it is a creative incubator, performing arts training centre, and artistic catalyst, working in connection with multiple community groups across sectors.

The only option the City of Peterborough has in place is for TTOK to appeal the granting result before Council on March 27th. In no way does TTOK propose that the funding come out of that awarded to other organizations.

Please sign this petition and urge Mayor and Council to send a different message — that TTOK is valued — by investing in this vital organization.

We, the undersigned, implore the Mayor and Council for the City of Peterborough to reconsider this decision and continue TTOK’s funding at $15,000, the same level the organization received last year.