Jun 04, 2020 Public Art Committee on 2020-06-04 1:00 PM

this is the June 4th public art committee meeting we'll start with role Monet Franklin is here Michelle in Nick back and forth here Meredith Ewing here Jodie Ismer here I think Nicholson here Harry Nobles it's deal here Georgina I think she's here Terry's here also he was waving that he was here I got me Georgina here right I think we got everyone okay and the first item on the list is a presentation for the members of the public first I consider a receive or hold report and give staff direction regarding the odd districts application for Texas Commission of Arts respond cultural district grant program sure and just on the presentation to members from members of the public we didn't we did post the agenda and the public comment form and we did not receive any comments ahead of time and we didn't have anyone called into the meeting so for the application to the Texas Commission on the Arts we're going to switch over now to the presentation Christina like I said Christina is going to run that so I'm gonna disappear for a second we're all going to disappear you're gonna see the presentation and then when we finish the presentation we'll all be able to see each other again so give us one second to get switched over all right so the reason we got together quickly today with this meeting is that there is a program available through the Texas Commission on the Arts called the arts respond cultural district project grant program and since we received our cultural districts designation in September we are eligible to apply the deadline for the application is June 15th so prior to submitting the application we wanted to go over the grant project with the Public Art Committee get your feedback so that we could incorporate it into the application and then we'll need to go to City Council next week the night that's the last City Council meeting prior to the deadline for the application so let's go to the next slide so the cultural district project grant program is like I said a project through the Texas Commission on the Arts all eligible cultural designated cultural districts are eligible to apply as well as arts organizations within the district that are certified the Texas Commission on the Arts goes through a process of actually certifying additional organizations that can also make submissions through this project so we had I think five or six organizations also within the district get certified Greater Denton Arts Council was one I believed it in community theater was one that got certified so they were also eligible to submit individual applications this particular grant project is designed to generate cultural tourism much like the cultural district program itself projects that are submitted through this program have to fit in one of the five categories you see listed on the screen high quality arts programming an enhancement to the cultural district improved signage or wayfinding promotion of the district or organizational support some eligibility and application information is that organizations can only submit one application per deadline but there are multiple deadlines for this project and so we could submit again if another round of funding comes available this year or at the next deadline whenever that is multiple organizations within the district can also submit so just because the original didn't district makes a submission if we had another established organization they would be able to submit as well request can be made for anywhere from three thousand to two hundred and fifty thousand dollars but the request cannot exceed fifty percent of the budget and I will note that some of the other information related to the grant will kind of go over as we go through the project that we're proposing but things to keep in mind is that we have to maintain at least a one-to-one so whatever we request from the grant we also have to make sure we have funding available on the city side because we would have to match at least one to one and these are also highly competitive grant so we will have to enter into a competitive applicant pool and if our application is not accepted then we'd either have to find another way to fund the project or maybe postpone the project and wait until we have are able to submit again so that's sort of an overview of the grant project and the next slide we are going to jump into the project proposal so when we were looking at what projects were in the hopper and at a place that we could submit for the cultural district the first one that came to mind was the women's the monument to the women's interracial fellowship and if the committee remembers you approved this project at your March meeting the last time that we all saw each other and at that time we talked about the fact that there was no funding tied to that project and we would have to evaluate what we wanted to do and how we wanted to move forward with that project in the future so we thought that this project would be the first primary project that we've sort of started the process on and for it to be eligible for the grant and so our project proposal is the creation of a signature public art piece in a featured location within the district and we'll talk about locations in a few slides and because it has to occur within the district itself but a monument that honors the women's interracial fellowship and the values of community and understanding which is the precise project that we talked about back in March so next slide so when we talked previously we talked about sharing ideas for location these were the ideas that we got back from the committee for possible locations one was within Quaker Town Park one was in the City Hall courtyard and one was the Industrial Street Park that's right sorry you can't see my mouse the Industrial Street Park which is the middle star kind of right in the middle nope there there you go that middle star right there one location was within Fred Moore Park and then one location at the American Legion Senior Center and the comment we received back from that is that that was where the women often met and so that location had a special place and special connection to the month to the women involved in in the fellowship itself of course we want the public art committees input on the final location and also we want to look at once we have the location settled what size monument we would be able to have and what infrastructure needs we would have right you could go to the next slide so putting together we an abbreviated pretty quick timeline of this project and oh can you go to the next slide oh okay we're trying to add Michelle Lint to the meeting sorry for that little hiccup see if we can get her added real quick but going forward with their project timeline and so here we are in June we would be looking at forming a project subcommittee in July meeting with members of the women's interracial fellowship to discuss ideas and input and how they would think to best honor the work that they did and the grants would be awarded late summer early fall and then as you see a pretty aggressive timeline with moving forward with artists proposals and conceptual design and selection this fall and then in the winter holding public input meetings having a final design approved with construction beginning in January I'm sorry those dates are wrong in January of 2021 I'm not gonna make us redo 2020 promise so right there we will that actually should be January 2021 and going forward there with a completion date of no later than the end of July 2021 and the reason for that is that the grant requires that the project be completed by August next slide so we looked at other projects that we did of similar size and scope and we were looking towards really the MLK rec center project is sort of the same size project that we would be able to fund again the city has to commit 50% of the funding so we were looking at what would be available from the public art hot funds that could be used as the matching component to this grant and so we came up with a budget about $80,000 now on the grant application we break that down a little bit further about $70,000 going towards the artist contract itself in the monument and reserving about $10,000 for anything from promotions and any additional construction that needs to be done to prepare the sites lighting if there's additional you know a pad that needs to be built for the site sort of that prep work and so that's how we've broken down the budget and some details for you guys to keep in mind with this budget is that for a budget at that scale that would mean probably committing the remainder of the 1920 hot funds that you currently have in your budget and it could mean up to all of the 2021 hot funds and the reason I say up to all of that is you have to keep in mind that those funds have been greatly impacted by the COVID pandemic and so we might see a lower number in 2021 than we've worked with the past few years and so I want to keep that kind of at the top of the committee's minds as it might require quite a bit of financial commitment of the public art funds to reach that budget the other thing to keep in mind is that the grant award could they could award us a lower grant than what we're requesting it's based on the scoring and if that is the case it would increase the city's contribution so we would have to have a little bit of contingency built in that then we could meet the match requirement if our project was approved at a lower amount okay next slide so an overview of the application process so applications are due June 15th we've been working behind the scenes with this project trying to make sure that we could get a presentation completed by that deadline so we have all of the background information and just need to assemble it I shared with you the written project narrative and which is the major part of the application which is describing the project and its impact on the community and the overview of the cultural district and organization it does have a small marketing plan component and which we are going to tie into the marketing plan that the committee approved as part of the cultural district application process and then we're also working with the Convention and Visitors Bureau to determine and how we measure the visitorship and the economic impact of of public art in the community or public art piece of this scale and the project budget and financial information is the piece that I talked about we do a little bit of a breakdown of that $80,000 it requires an audio visual presentation which is essentially us making a formal presentation that's recorded and kind of walking through and explaining that project so we are ready to do that we kind of have have the sideshow in mind and and some images associated with that that we're ready to move forward with and then it does require a letter of support from the cultural district itself so one thing that we would be asking for if the committee chooses to move forward is that on the June 9th City Council agenda there is a resolution that will allow the committee to send a letter of support to the Texas Commission on the Arts and that is a requirement of the application itself so if we didn't have that our application would be completely ineligible so we're gonna go ask City Council next week for that permission and I think sorry the last thing just to prime everyone what we need direction on to finish the application so if the project itself is something the committee wants to move forward with with the application and the location if we wanted to settle the app the location of the project prior to submitting the application and comfort level with with the budget as we've outlined it and then certainly the support for the letter of support but those are our four key areas that that I want to make sure we get to discuss today and that I believe is the end of the presentation so we're gonna take it down so if we need to jump back in the presentation at any point we can but this way I can we can see each other and talk about those elements and you should all have the presentation I emailed it to you if you if you need to refer back to it but I'll turn it back over to Monet and let her call on everyone or anyone have any ideas where to put it I have an idea but I want to see everyone else speaking the same thing I'm thinking I don't have any strong opinions on where it should go a bit of clarity is the district itself so it does stretch as far as over towards the MLK and in Southeast Bend it's not just literally like in the square area or you know industrial it does not include the MLK Rick's rec center but it does include Fred Moore Park and Oakwood Cemetery over to that direction okay yeah so so I guess my other question would just be I mean I may be I mean I know so they're rebuilding part of the the American Legion right there you know part is we could just be incorporated at all or that too far off the mark for this grant to be we probably couldn't complete this before that that facility is completed you know I guess that's what that would kind of rule out that that area so it was part of them the American Legion Fred Moore Park area it would be a little bit challenging to have the piece of art done prior to the center being complete but I did ask Gary Packin if that was a feasible location and he said yes I mean we could figure out if it had to have a temporary home there prior to its final place I think that's something we could work out if that was the location that we wanted to move forward with but I certainly understand that the concern with that and we'll verify that so if it like I said if that was the location that the committee wanted we'll make sure that that's feasible so maybe we have a kind of first and second option does anyone else have any input I do can I talk is that oh Michelle yeah I can't hear you yeah I can't hear Michelle either I also feel I was texting Paul Meltzer about this that we need to make sure that we can also take private funds on this I feel that the city will will rally around this concept especially in the political times we're in and and so I agree that the statue is an awesome idea that was the very first meeting I ever sat in on was where it got introduced and I feel like very personally that I want to see this done but I also think that I would like to know where I would like to know that wherever it goes is going to be a place where people who come to visit the city are gonna see it and not just tucked away somewhere in a corner and I'm not sure about the accepting private funds for it that's something that we would have to talk about with our legal department and how we would do that but we certainly can ask that question a little bit about it he says that he's gonna help us with it but I feel like like whatever other strictures this grant may offer if it was $40,000 from them versus a basically infinite amount of money from the community I would rather go that path but I mean I say apply for it but just let's make sure that that doesn't tie us up to a point that we can't get private monies for this sure that would not be the reason we we could in the application itself you can acknowledge different funding sources so there is the ability to say yes we're also seeking private funds for this so I don't think it would limit us I'm more concerned about the city organization being able to ask for donations and so if that's what I need to talk about with our attorneys okay thanks I had a question as far as deciding on locations or a location is there already like a spot designated in each location where the public art would go like in each in each location like this plot is set aside for the artwork or or is that kind of up for negotiation like within so one of the requirements of any funding that we would receive from the Texas Commission on the Arts is that the piece of art has to meet ADA requirements so we would not be able to have the piece of art in sort of the middle of a park where there wasn't an accessible sidewalk for it to be reached so when we kind of got to that point if we chose the location we would make sure we know generally we want it in this area we would make sure that based on the size and scale and the design of the art that we would place it in an area that was accessible if that makes sense so it would be dependent upon which location the size of the piece what additional work needed to be done that adds cost to it to the project so that's one thing we'd want to make sure that we we had it in a place that was accessible right and when I didn't catch it when do we need to decide on the location so we don't have to decide on the location prior to submitting the application that's something we can continue I just wanted to give the committee that option and if we wanted to submit with a specific location in mind you do not have to have a settled location that can be decided in the kind of pre work that we would be doing over the next few months anything else all right are we we need to decide whether we're gonna actually apply for this grant right before we move to the next item on the agenda yes okay I move that we approve the application process for the grant I'll second all in favor can we go just because we can't see everybody I'm on a says I Michelle in here Michelle can you repeat it Michelle okay we can hear you we kind of hear you go in and out Michelle yes okay thank you did you just call my name sorry yes I'll see if you want to yes or no yes Meredith Bowie yes Alicia Egger absent absent Jody is more yes Frederick Nicholson yes it's still in favor I Georgina Ngozi I really don't have the vote right but I'll I certainly support it yes everyone is a favor right well thank you and we will work to finish the application and get it turned in by the very quickly approaching June 15th that well we'll take it to City Council next week so we'll make sure that that happens and then if City Council approves the resolution then we will make sure to have the application in by the June 15th deadline and we'll give you an update at our next Public Art Committee which is just after the deadline do we also need to vote on getting that requesting that letter from council I thought that was part of your motion sort of approving that that's fine I just wanted to make sure that we didn't need to okay no I've considered that part of that application process so okay just making sure that we're done eyes and crops and teas I got you Nick thank you okay next item receive report and hold discussion against that direction of our application made by our Council's National Endowment for the Arts NEA grant and possible support of this rental application for a text mission of arts PCA arts respond and a book for Arts District project right I will this was something Georgina and I have been talking about this grant program and so Georgina actually submitted an application for an NEA grant for for Greater Denton Arts Council and wanted to at the time we were considering and also asking the committee for a letter support for an additional grant for TCA but I'll let Georgina give an update on the NEA grant process can you hear me we can hear you okay Jessica thank you for this platform and the opportunity to talk about this NEA grant NEA put out a grant for under the title of the CARES Act and in support of nonprofit arts organizations as it related to COVID-19 GDAC submitted a grant back in April called art soul renewal project it's a project that envisions GDAC script stripping all of its galleries and inviting local artists to provide visual art and installations in all of our spaces all of our gallery spaces we're going to put out a call for 25 at least 25 artists is what we hope to secure and they will have access to the all three galleries with a certain amount of space assigned to each one the second part of and the artwork would be reflective of this period of the coronavirus pandemic and its impact on our community the second part of the grant would be to host an opening celebration where the community at large would be invited to come in and see the work but also be engaged in a series or multiple activities including workshops we hope to bring in mental health professionals and writers who can help the community share their stories and we hope to collect that that will ultimately result in a catalog to be distributed throughout the community and quite honestly throughout the region and the nation we are waiting to hear from NEA to see if that grant has been secure the dollar amount that we can receive for this grant is $50,000 we will provide if funded the materials that the artists need to do the work and that's pretty much it in the nutshell when we consider what I considered the possibility of going to TCA my thought at the time before talking with Jessica was that maybe with TCA support we could build upon this NEA initiative if we receive that funding but I think that we've made the right decision to have the city go for the TCA grant and hopefully GDAC will be able to secure the NEA grant and the community as a large will be able to benefit thank you Jessica thanks Georgina so we don't actually need a motion on this we just wanted to keep you up to date and know that we're working with GDAC and support their project and promote their project and as well as their lending support to our application as well so great collaborative effort right between the city and GDAC so we appreciate that awesome Georgina when do you find out if you're if you've been granted that I'm sitting on pins and needles waiting today because it's supposed they're supposed to announce it the first week of June and quite honestly right before I got on this call I reached out to see if I could find out whether or not we will receive the grant so I'm thinking in the next several days we should know let me also add that we have already carved out three months in our exhibit schedule to accommodate this project and those and that would be May through July 21 would those be local artists or national local artists like Denton or DFW to be honest with you the preference would probably be given to Denton artists but the call will go out to DFW great that's that's wonderful that's a wonderful idea well good luck I can't wait to hear what happens well it's for all of us and I hope that it works out in our favor that'll be good and then concluding items anybody have anything I'll just say that we'll be back to our normal semi normal meeting the meeting that we're holding later in June will be our normal June public art meeting so we'll look forward to seeing you all then I would like to suggest one thing and this is totally up to y'all to how you feel about it but as the statue on the courthouse square is public art I would like for you all to think about whether we could perhaps make a statement as the city and not the county public art people about our feelings towards its persistence in our town any other comments or items I think that's that's everything for today we'll close the meeting at 138