Cheech museum adds over $29M to Riverside’s local economy

The Cheech Marin Center for Chicano Art & Culture has infused $29 million into Riverside’s local economy in its first two years, prompting city officials Friday to call The Cheech a significant economic driver in the city and a magnet for tourists from outside the area.

The Cheech, as it is popularly known, exceeded expectations when this new addition to the Riverside Art Museum drew 227,932 visitors between June 2022 and June 2024, with 90% coming from outside the area, according to the city.

“Partnerships are flourishing in Riverside, but few have proved more fruitful than the public-private moon shot we call The Cheech,” Mayor Patricia Lock Dawson said in her recent State of the City address. “And we have the data to prove it.”

Cheech Marin is among the world’s leading collectors of Chicano art, and his extensive collection of paintings, sculptures, photography and video art was donated to the Riverside Art Museum for display in The Cheech.

Officials said The Cheech has become a cultural hub attracting people from all over the world which in the process supports local tourism, helps lead to job creation and adds to the city’s overall economic growth.

“I am so proud of these findings,” Marin said in a statement. “But I’m not surprised. For over 20 years, as my collection traveled the country, we saw museums experience record attendance when our exhibitions opened. I have always said that Riverside is the next great art town, and this study proves we are on our way.”

The city hired contractor Costa Mesa-based Boules Consulting LLC to conduct the economic study, which used attendance data, economic metrics, operation records from The Cheech and public records including hotel transient occupancy tax records, officials said.

Officials noted art center’s overall economic impact. The study credited The Cheech with adding $2.2 million in business for local restaurants, $1.5 million into local retail stores and $510,000 into Riverside hotels. In addition to boosting tourism, the art center has made significant contributions to local employment and tax revenue, the study found.

“This spending pattern underscores The Cheech’s significant role as a cultural tourism driver, with non-local visitors consistently accounting for the majority of expenditures across all categories,” according to the study. “The high proportion of nonlocal spending suggests that The Cheech is successfully attracting visitors from outside Riverside, contributing substantially to the local economy through tourism-related revenue.”

A benefit concert in May 2022 and the ¡DESCUBRA! event in January 2023 drove demand higher than normal in the hospitality and transportation sectors, which increased the city’s hotel transient occupancy tax revenue by $1.4 million, or 16.4% more than the previous year.

“The Cheech has been a point of pride for Riversiders since it opened more than two years ago,” Mayor Pro Tem Sean Mill said in a statement. “Now we know that our investments are paying off, and The Cheech is helping to inject money into our local economy from outside the area.”

Construction and renovation of The Cheech, which is in the space that formerly housed the city’s Main Library, provided an $18 million economic boost, officials said, adding that print and television media coverage of The Cheech reached more than 14 million people. Officials estimated that media attention was “valued at the minimum of as much as $890,000.”

The Cheech began as “Papel Chicano Dos,” a 2017 exhibition at the Riverside Art Museum that featured art pieces from Marin’s collection. The now-flourishing art and cultural center opened in 2022 as a partnership between the city, the Riverside Art Museum and Marin.

The 61,420-square-foot museum showcases more than 500 works by prominent Chicano artists. Previously The Cheech Marin Collection was shown at more than 50 art institutions throughout the United States.

With the right strategic planning, The Cheech is poised to increase its cultural and economic impact, the study found.

“The Cheech has substantial growth potential,” according to the study. “As Riverside continues to grow and diversify, the museum can expand its role in both the city’s cultural and economic landscape. By maintaining innovation in programming, fostering local collaborations, and securing diverse funding sources, the museum has the opportunity to strengthen its position as a key cultural institution and a driver of community engagement and economic growth.”

“This is just the beginning,” Patricia Reynolds, president of the Riverside Art Museum Board of Trustees, said in a statement. “We have a dynamic array of exhibitions and programs planned for the future. There is always something new to see at The Cheech.”

More information about The Cheech is online at riversideartmuseum.org/visit/the-cheech.

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