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HomeMy WebLinkAbout02-06-2020 Public Art Advisory CommitteePublic Art Advisory Committee Thursday, February 6, 2020 5:30 PM Note New Tirr Helling Lobby Conference Room 410 E Washington St AGENDA Call to order Public discussion of any item not on the agenda Consideration of minutes of the January 16, 2020 meeting Nomination and Election of Officers — the positions of Chairperson and Vice Chairperson for the 2020 Calendar Year will be voted on Discuss Artist Registry Database — Information Technology staff will be developing an online artist's database available for public access. Input from the committee regarding the components and structure of the database will be discussed. Review of Draft Management Plan — Adjustments have been made to the Management Plan suggested at last month's meeting. The highlighted sections will be reviewed at the February meeting (to be distributed next week). Preliminary Discussion regarding allocation of FY20 funding — a list of potential projects is included for initial consideration. Committee announcements or Committee reports Staff reports Adjournment If you will need disability -related accommodations in order to participate in this program/event, please contact Marcia Bollinger, Neighborhood and Development Services at 319-356-5237 or marcia- bollinger@iowo-city.org. Early requests are strongly encouraged to allow sufficient time to meet your access needs. PRELIMINARY MINUTES PUBLIC ART ADVISORY COMMITTEE JANUARY 16, 2020 5:30PM LOBBY CONFERENCE ROOM — CITY HALL MEMBERS PRESENT: Vero Rose Smith, Nancy Purington, Andrea Truitt, Eddie Boyken, Steve Miller, Juli Seydell Johnson, Joe Welter (for Ron Knoche, Public Works) STAFF PRESENT: Marcia Bollinger, Wendy Ford, Camille Soleil PUBLIC PRESENT: Isaac Hamlet, Arts and Entertainment Reporter for the Press -Citizen CALL TO ORDER Rose Smith called the meeting to order at 5:31 p.m. PUBLIC DISCUSSION OF ANY ITEM NOT ON THE AGENDA There was none. INTRODUCTION OF 2020 PAAC Rose Smith welcomed new PAAC member Nancy Purington. PAAC members, staff and public introduced themselves. CONSIDERATION OF MINUTES OF THE DECEMBER 5, 2019 MEETING Miller noted the misspelling of Summerwill in Staff Reports. Seydell Johnson made a motion to accept the minutes with that correction. Truitt seconded the motion. Meeting minutes were approved. REVIEW OF UPDATES FARMER'S MARKET CALL TO ARTISTS Seydell Johnson noted it has been a year and a half since the Call to Artists was sent out the first time. At that time the idea was to brighten up the space with all the construction taking place next door. She noted that the park is now open and the area looks good. At that time five or six proposals were received, and only one of the proposals was viable. Unfortunately, that artist has not been able to produce. Seydell Johnson asked that the PAAC send the call out again for piece which will dress up the parking ramp and let people know it is the Farmer's Market. Seydell Johnson shared that there is currently $6,000 in the Farmer's Market budget for the piece as well as $1,000 matching funds from PAAC in FY2018. Miller advocated for increasing the budget to draw more quality submissions. There was much discussion about the difficulty in getting serious proposals for such a small sum. Rose Smith asked about project goals: How long is this installation expected to be up, is it tied to the actual market or permanent? Seydell Johnson replied that it would be permanent on the ramp, for at least 5-10 years. Rose Smith suggested changing the language of the call to reflect that so it is clear that it is not tied seasonally to the Farmer's Market but rather, permanent. Rose Smith also suggested narrowing the time frame, either 5-7 or 7-9 years. Seydell Johnson said 5-7. Rose Smith pointed out that anything paint -based would not be viable for that long of a timeframe. Rose Smith also suggested that schematics of the ramp and placement instructions would be helpful to include with the call. Seydell Johnson said the Call to Artists will include dimensions of the space and how it is to be attached to the structure. Rose Smith asked if the piece must include specific reference to the Iowa City Farmer's Market. Seydell Johnson responded that the piece should celebrate the farmers market year-round but it won't need to say "Iowa City Farmer's Market." If the Farmer's Market changes its venue, will it have to move? Seydell Johnson stated that 5-7 years will be safe. Bollinger said that the call would will put out to Iowa Arts Council. Seydell Johnson added that she would like the piece to complement the new park master plan. Purington asked it if would it be prudent to consider limiting the Call to Artists in Johnson County or Eastern Iowa. There was discussion about that, with the consensus being to let artists self- select by placing it with the Iowa Arts Council. Miller noted that $7,000 is a very small budget, adding that if you want something bigger that includes lighting, the budget must be bigger. Seydell Johnson said that her preference is something over the arch, and would love it to include more. She talked about the interior of the parking ramp as a possible future separate project, reiterating that the first priority is outside. There was lengthy discussion about expanding the budget for the project. Rose Smith and Miller both felt that there would be a difference in the level of proposals received the budget would increase to the $15,000-$20,000 range. Bollinger pointed out that City Council still needed to approve the plan before releasing funds for 2020 fiscal year. Truitt spoke about the importance of this piece, because of the location across from City Hall and the importance of the Farmer's Market, and advocated for increasing the contribution from PAAC because it is a longer -term project. Seydell Johnson and Purington both spoke of the importance of the Farmer's Market and this project. Bollinger offered that there were 2 projects still on hold from previous funding years -- Creekside Park, $6,000, and the "Hit the Ground" artwork that would be painted on trails in the South District to encourage movement and exercise, $3,000, that could be reallocated to this project as they would not be completed until this current fiscal year. Miller asked what Council is expecting to see to formalize the new budget and Bollinger replied that there will be some report to the council by April or May. Public matching grants and everything is on hold until then. Rose Smith, Miller, Purington and Truitt all spoke in favor of increasing the scope of the project as it is a focal point and an important work. There was discussion on the time frame for the project and it was decided that proposals will be evaluated for the viability of ten years. Rose Smith emphasized that proposals should include a maintenance plan, checkpoints at which work needs to be evaluated. There was discussion on maintenance of the piece, and how that would work. Bollinger stated that most contracts require some amount of time after installation that the artists will address any problems. Miller moved to reallocate the Fiscal Year 2019 funds from the Creekside Park ($6,000) and the "Hit the Ground" fitness artwork ($3,000) to the Farmer's Market project until we can have that money available in order to increase the Farmer's Market project to $16,000 total. Truitt seconded. The motion carried. Discussion next shifted to approving this Call to Artists pending suggestions made by this committee. The discussion around time frame noted that if the call went out during the following week, artists would have 2 months to respond, so it was decided to leave the deadline to respond at March 20, 2020. In order to complete billing during this fiscal year, the committee agreed that work must be done and invoiced by June 15, 2020. Payment to the artist would occur in three payments. There was further discussion on timeframe and limiting call to nearby artists. Seydell Johnson made a motion that PAAC use this Call for Artists with the changes discussed for Farmer's Market Art. Miller seconded. The motion carried. REVIEW OF DRAFT MANAGEMENT PLAN Bollinger presented the most recent draft of the Public Art Management Plan, which was revised and edited, making it easier to read with better flow. Welter suggested removing the words "ensure' and" insure', under goals 2 and 3, saying that the City and this committee can't ensure or insure anything. Rose Smith suggested changing the verbiage in goal 2 to "for everyone in the community," Goal 3, "plan for the care and maintenance..." On page 7, similar work on language, remove "ensure' and "insure' throughout document. Rose Smith brought up distinguishing throughout the documents the responsibilities of PAAC vs staff, adding more language about recommending on or advising for PAAC as it is up to City staff to implement things. She urged that the document use language reflecting the advisory role of PAAC versus the implementation role of staff. Miller asked if there is a working spreadsheet of budget that is current. Bollinger replied that there should be, and the budget has been so small over the last few years that it wasn't a priority. Purington referred to Page 8, 47, "all things being equal, preference will be given to Iowa City artists." There was discussion on verbiage and is it potential in providing preference to Iowa City artists. This led to discussion on the differences between projects, the Proposal versus the RFQ process, and joint projects with other City departments. Rose Smith summarized by stating that members of staff who are present today will consult with the City Attorney's office to find out specifically what language can be used when soliciting proposals in order to encourage more local participation. Staff will have an update on this language by the time the management plan is finalized in March or April. Rose Smith again brought up being clear what the PAAC is responsible for advising but staff does the reporting/inspections. She also made the point that it is important to note all of the duties of "staff members," reminding the committee that when speaking about budgetary allocation for public art, one of the things embedded in the strategic plan is funding for a staff person, and in noting all of the responsibilities of staff, we are building out that position in a way that is sustainable. On page 18, under Public Art Policies and procedures "28" was a typo. Under 7.1 the first bullet point, change conservator to "qualified professional." On page 19, 2nd bullet, "City Manager or their designee". 31 bullet, "advise on." 411' bullet, Qualified professional," and make this language consistent throughout. On page 19, 7.4 change 1-5 years to "as stated in maintenance report." Remove numbers 9, 9.1. After discussion, the committee didn't feel it was appropriate for this document to state how funding occurs. Pursuing grants or private fundraising to provide supplemental funding is within the purview of the PAAC, but the actual funding is determined by City Council. Section 10, Conflict of Interest, needs to be discussed further. Bollinger noted that the draft language is not how the committee has been operating in recent years. Rose Smith urged to keep it consistent with other boards and commissions within the city, and re-evaluation built into each term. Typo on Page 20, "City Manager, or their designee." Rose Smith asked if anyone has any other comment about edits to the management plan, to please have to Bollinger by Friday January 24" REVIEW OF CITY FACILITIES INVENTORY AND INSPECTION PROCESS Bollinger shared that she is working with Information Technology staff to develop a database for inventory and maintenance of public art assets. Bollinger shared a list of current City facilities, noting that anything highlighted in yellow has a higher amount of public traffic, and she asked if anyone on the committee is interested in participating and looking at facilities as possible locations for public art, to contact her directly. COMMITTEE ANNOUNCEMENTS OR COMMITTEE REPORTS Seydell Johnson asked the committee for ideas of what to do with a sculpture that is currently in storage at cemetery. The brass and copper sculpture was removed from display several years ago after it was discovered that cemetery visitors were disturbed by the statue. Seydell Johnson was interested to hear if PAAC members had suggestions on future use of the sculpture with no credible options being suggested. Seydell Johnson thanked the committee, and thought the best option at this point would be to move forward with taking it to auction on the govdeals website. STAFF REPORTS Bollinger reported that Poetry in Public is moving along with a submission deadline of February 7. City Communications staff will be present in February meeting to talk about outreach. Bollinger and Ford rescheduled their meeting about the relocation of "Dorothy" due to weather. The next meeting will be February 6, 5:30pm. ADJOURNMENT Seydell Johnson motioned to adjourn. Miller second. Adjourned at 7:20pm. Public Art Advisory Committee Attendance Record 2019-2020 Name Term 1110/19 317119 4/4/19 512119 6/6/19 7/11/19 811/19 915119 1117/19 1215119 1/16/20 Expires Nancy 1/1/2021 -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- x Purin ton Ron x x x Knoche x x x x x x x X Juli x x Seydell- x O/E x x x x x x x Johnson Vero x x x Rose 1 /1 /2021 x x O/E x x x x x Smith Steve 2/1/2021 x x x x x x x x x x X Miller Andre 1/1/2022 x x x x x X x x x X Eddie 1 /1 /2022 x x x x x x x x O x x Bo ken Key: X = Present 0 = Absent O/E = Absent/Excused --- = Not a member Potential Public Art Projects • The Neighborhood Art Project — Lucas Farms, Ty n Cae, College Green, Oak Grove Bluffwood • Parks - Hickory Hill, Mercer Park, College Green, Kiwanis, Terry Trueblood, Peninsula, Waterworks Prairie Park, Fraunholtz-Miller, Highland, Hunters Run • Trails — Court Hill Trail, Iowa River Trail • Parking Ramps —Capital Street, Tower Place • Buildings/grounds —Airport, Animal Services, Eastside Recycling • South District Mural project- $12,000 or 15,000 raised. East wall of Pepperwood Mall. • Century Link Mural — building on Burlington. ICDD, UNESCO started working through this in 2018. Received preliminary approval from Century Link. Issues with contract requirements - such as "removing' the mural with 30 days' notice, etc. Downtown streetscape plan shows a Pic of a mural on the building. • Asculpture garden either at the Peninsula Park or Waterworks Park. • A large installation at Waterworks Park. PAAC worked through this project 10 years ago and it became a political hot button and denied. It was going to be privately funded except for the artist fee. • Temporary art installations. • More matching funds for local artists. • Performance art funding • Relocation of Iowa Literary Walk plaques to a vertical surface. I'd guess $50-80K. 0 Financial assistance for establishment an art center.