Welcome to the July 22nd, 2024 Arts Commission meeting.
The Arts Commission is conducting this meeting from the City Council Chamber
and via teleconference at Rua Orlando Moscasso at North 17 Boca do Rio in Salvador, Bahia
to accommodate Commissioner Baltazar who will be attending the meeting remotely due to a previously scheduled trip.
Effective October 17th, 2023, public comments may be made in person or in writing.
If you would like to view the meeting remotely, you may do so in one of the following ways.
YouTube Live, Comcast Cable Channel 1028,
Rossmore Channel 26, Wave Channel 29,
AT&T U-verse Channel 99, or live stream online on the city's website.
Would the secretary please call the roll?
Mr. Tespe, Commissioner McNani.
Here.
Commissioner Lavelle.
Here.
Mr. Clauber.
Here.
Commissioner Baltazar.
Here.
And Vice Chair Dresser.
Here.
Thank you.
Mr. Safin, would you please do an introduction
to the new commissioners?
Absolutely, with pleasure.
Thank you, Vice Chair.
So the commissioners may remember
that we had two friends leave us in the spring.
Commissioners Meredith and Emmanuel and the city council,
when terms expire, do seek new commissioners.
And so through a thorough search and many applicants,
the council found two very well qualified commissioners
to join the commission.
And so it's with pleasure that we are able to welcome them
officially to the Arts Commission.
We weren't able to meet in April,
so this is their first meeting.
And so I just thought it'd be helpful
each of them introduce themselves briefly to the rest of the commissioners and to the the world
watching at least from Brazil. So if you'd like to start a little bit about yourself and then
we'll pass it on and then we'll go from there. Hi my name is Netzina Tesfait. I am a resident
of Walnut Creek and a mother of two small children and also a public art artist in the city of Walnut
Creek. I'm Peter Mignani lived in Walnut Creek for about 27 years. I'm a member of
the Walnut Creek Library Foundation and my parents were artists and the fact
they met at the Federal Arts Project is on WPA in San Francisco so I have it in
my DNA. Very good so thank you Vice Chair. We just want to make sure that
everybody knew who they were and you'll be spending at least the next couple
years together. So it's important that we all kind of know who we are. So thank you
and welcome. Thank you for introducing yourselves and welcome to the Arts Commission. We're
thrilled to have you. This portion of the meeting is reserved for comment on items not
on the agenda. Under the Brown Act, the Commission cannot act on items raised during public communications
but may respond briefly to statements made or questions posed. Request clarification
or refer the item to staff. Are there any members of the public wishing to make a public
comment. I see that nobody's wants to make a public comment we're going to
move on to the consent calendar. Next on the agenda is a consent calendar also
known as the minutes. Does any commissioner have questions on any item
on the consent calendar? There are no questions from any commissioners so we're
looking for a motion to approve the consent calendar. I make a motion to
approve the consent calendar. Is there a second? I second this motion. Thank you.
We get a roll call vote please. And the new commissioners may abstain from
voting since you were part of this. So Commissioner Clauber? Yes. Commissioner
Lamel? Yes. Commissioner Balthazar? Yes. And Vice Chair Dresser? Yes. Motion
approved 4-0, thank you. Next on the agenda is an item for commission
consideration election of chair and vice chair for the chair who would like to
make a motion I would like to make a motion I make a motion to elect or to a
point Jill Dresser as or president. Chair. Chair. Thank you. We need a second. I second it. Thank you, Commissioner Altazar.
Are we ready to take a vote? I will call the roll. Commissioner Clauber. Yes.
yes. Mr. Baltasar. Yes. Mr. Lamont. Yes. Mr. Tesfay. Yes. Mr. Magnani. Yes. And vice chair
dresser. Yes. Congratulations chair dresser. Thank you very much. Next, it's time to um
select a vice chair. Who would like to make the motion? I would like to make a motion for them.
I would like to um make a motion to appoint Sarah Baltasar as the vice chair.
I would like to make a second.
I second this motion.
Thank you.
I'll take the roll.
Commissioner Clauber.
Yes.
Commissioner LeMot.
Yes.
Commissioner Tesve.
Yes.
Commissioner Magnani.
Yes.
Commissioner Altazar.
I'll vote for myself.
Yes.
You may.
Yes.
Did I have you vote for yourself?
Yes.
OK, good.
And Chair Dresser.
Yes.
All right.
The motion carries unanimously.
Thank you.
Congratulations Vice-Chair Baltazar.
Next on the agenda is an item for commission consideration.
Appointment of commissioners to liaison roles by chair.
These are the liaison appointments for 2024, 2025.
Community Arts Foundation, commissioner dresser.
Design Review Commission, commissioner Magnani.
Library Community Art Gallery, commissioner Tesfaye.
public art subcommittee, commissioners dresser and clobber,
special projects and murals, commissioner clobber,
and the Heather Farm Aquatic and Community Center
and public art commissioner Balthazar.
Can we take any vote for that?
No, that's the chair's prerogative to a point.
So I presume the chair has shared with the commissioners
what their roles and responsibilities are.
So as we move forward with that, staff is also available
if there are any questions about what it means to be
on various liaison assignments.
So get a reach out to me or to Monica and we can help you.
Thank you.
Next on the agenda is an item for commission consideration.
Consideration of public art locations for the new Heather
Farm Aquatic and Community Center.
At this time I invite staff to provide the presentation.
Oh, perfect.
Thank you.
Good evening, commissioners.
All right, so let's see.
So the statement of issue.
Yes.
Oh, I'm sorry.
Hi, everybody.
My name is Mariah Nelson Blier.
I'm the Public Art Manager for the city of Walnut Creek.
Nice to be here with all of you this evening.
And now I will go on with my presentation.
Haven't seen you since the January meeting.
but the statement of issue we met on October 23rd, 2023.
And at that time, the Arts Commission
recommended City Council establish a public art project
and budget in conjunction with the new
Heather Farm Aquatic and Community Center.
And at the same time, the same meeting,
staff recommended and then the Arts Commission approved
an artist selection panel.
In May 2024, the city then published a request
for qualifications seeking artists to be reviewed
and recommended by the selection panel.
The commission is now asked to consider public art site
locations to guide this important project forward.
And we have some visual aids here.
Actually, let me leave this up.
So the recommended action for tonight is to review
and approved potential site locations for artwork
at the new Heather Farm Park and Aquatic Center
and the surrounding park areas as recommended by art stuff
and the public art committee that met.
So just to get you a little orientation here,
I think you may have all be familiar
with Heather Farm Park by now,
but we have up there an aerial view of the park
and the surrounding areas.
And we'll go a little bit deeper into this.
These are the five building site locations
for consideration tonight.
And I think that maybe it would be,
would it be helpful if I gave some background on this?
Yeah, I'm gonna give some background.
So the construction of a new combined aquatic
and community center at Heather Farm Park
provides an exciting opportunity, as you know,
for a very significant public art project.
Public art is a wonderful way to build a welcoming space
that reflects the community's values
and creates a sense of joy and well-being.
This project presents a key opportunity
to fulfill the mission
of the City of Walnut Creek's public art program
and taken from the Public Art Master Plan
to integrate art into the city's everyday environment
and build a dynamic and exciting and engaging place
to live, visit, and do business.
Arts commissioners, you serve an important role
in approving artwork site locations, which
define parameters to guide the artist selection panel
in recommending the most qualified artists
to deliver this artwork that is suitable and impactful
throughout the new community center and park.
This project offers many different opportunities
for artwork placement depending on the size and the medium.
There are multiple highly visible sites
throughout the park where artwork could be installed
and several locations inside and on the exterior
of the building for consideration.
The Public Art Master Plan defines the process
for selection and approval of public art
for private and public development
As the new Heather Firm Aquatic and Community Center
is city-owned property, the art project
for this new construction is classified
as a municipal public art project,
which requires that the Arts Commission
approve a selection panel, which you have done.
And going forward now, the next step
is to approve site locations.
So what's on your screen right now
is a rendering of the new building
that will be built in place of the current building.
And just to, there's a curve in the upper right hand section,
and that kind of indicates
that's where the circular driveway is that is existing.
It will remain a circular driveway,
but the building itself will be moved.
It will have some of the same footprint.
I don't know if you can read it easily on your screen.
but we did number the different places.
So number one is the exterior wall.
And we have met with the architects.
And they have confirmed that this is one space that
could accommodate artwork.
It's a 10 feet in height wall by 48 feet in length.
So that's one spot.
And then inside the atrium on the north wall,
so you have really long wall space,
and then the south wall space.
and also open to just interior.
And I do have some interior renderings
to help give you an idea of what that space looks like.
And then number five is floor area of the atrium.
So we're early enough in the project
where we can consider all of these spaces
that relate to the building.
So this is an image of the circular drive.
And we have a little arrow there with number one
as spot number one.
Unfortunately, we don't have a view where you can see it,
but you can imagine it's that wall to your left
as you walk up.
That's the aquatic center on the inside.
It's the changing room area there.
And just to the right of it is the main lobby entrance.
These are the other locations for consideration.
We have wall number two, which is, as you can see,
a big wall, wall number three,
And number four is just the general lobby,
and then area number five is the floor area,
something that could be worked in there.
Any questions?
Just for clarity, Mariah will continue
with her presentation.
If you'd like, Chair, we can go through the whole thing,
or we can stop here and take questions
about the locations attached to or inside the building,
whatever you, whatever.
My thought is I'd like to have all the locations
We have questions. Thank you. Thank you.
All right. So then here is the aerial view again for site locations for consideration.
The first is at the very main
entrance to Heather Farm Park at the northeast corner of YVR, Ignacio Valley Road and
North San Carlos Drive when you're turning in there now currently in that there's a little grass patch that has the sign to the entrance.
Lawn at the northwest corner of North San Carlos Drive and Heather Drive.
There's a big lawn area there where you turn left by the tennis courts and then at the
main entrance to the new facility near the circular drive.
And site four as an option, the lawn between the all abilities playground and the pond.
So there's a big lawn area there.
So we'll go a little bit, take a closer look.
So this is the main entrance as one option or option number one.
Here is a view of the lawn in the northwest corner.
You can see it's lots of space.
And that's looking out to the all abilities playground.
Here's the circular drive and here's the lawn area between the all abilities playground
and the pond.
And I have one more view of this, whoops, spot.
So these are all of the site locations for consideration.
Now, questions.
Questions from commissioners are welcome right now.
Commissioner Magnani.
Thanks.
I do understand that the committee
is not recommending the interior site.
So the Public Art Committee met and they felt
that artwork would be more effective
if it were placed in the outdoor locations
so that it could be accessible
to a greater number of people,
not just people utilizing the building.
So that was one thing that was discussed at our meeting
that they had concerns that if given the budget
and how it breaks down,
where would artwork make the biggest impact
and be enjoyed by the greatest amount of people?
So is that a concern for us tonight,
or is that something we're gonna be talking about
later in the process?
Yeah, you'll be asked to give direction this evening
on the preferred locations.
And so indoor, attach the building as well as outdoor.
So yes, all the sites that I presented to you this evening
are for your consideration tonight.
staff wanted to bring forward a range of options
and acknowledge that the public art committee
did recommend specifically the outdoor sites
and the full commission has the opportunity
to weigh all of those options.
Would you-
Sarah has a question.
Oh, sorry, sir.
Thank you.
Can we approve all of the sites
that are being put forward tonight,
both interior and exterior sites?
I think I'm struggling with understanding
the artist selection process and how that might play a role
because designing for interior spaces or exterior spaces
could be like really specific
to a certain type of public artist.
That's one of my questions and just I've heard the feedback
for both indoor and outdoor,
especially with the park and how much visibility it gets
just on a regular usage basis.
But is there a rationale for one or the other?
Or can we look at all 10 of these spaces
as options for public art?
Thank you for your question.
And yes, the answer is yes.
It's up to the Arts Commission as a whole
to make that choice.
and I think that, sure, if you keep them all on,
it's really up to the artist to then propose
where they think that their artwork will be most impactful,
and we leave it up to the artist.
It's really their charge to submit the proposal,
saying which spot they're most interested in seeing their art.
Does that answer your question?
It does, it does, but I just,
I had one other follow-up to it
around the actual construction and design team
that's working on the space.
Like, should we choose an artist
that would like to do outdoor spaces?
And there are five significant spots in the interior.
Is the construction and design and planning team
thinking about kind of that aesthetic
outside of the public art space,
but still to be kind of creative, welcoming, inviting.
Like how is the collaboration between
this public art project and the actual overall design
and planning working together?
So it's my understanding that the building
has already been designed and that plan is set.
so if there were artwork that were in corporate or proposed
in for the building, it would be separate from the design.
The art is not going to be made to match, quote unquote,
the design, it would be a separate, for example,
let's say mural or something on the outside,
but it would stand alone or separate.
So I think that, yes, we're starting this process
early enough that the artist, should they propose something
inside the building, will have an opportunity
to then meet with the architects or the construction people.
Because let's say they want to do something on the floor
or change that.
That opportunity does exist.
But with regards to the actual building,
that's going to be a separate thing than the artwork,
if that makes sense.
Yeah, I'm definitely not referring to the building
design.
It's more like those five spaces,
maybe not including the floor.
If they're not selected for public art,
they still are extremely important viable spaces to display.
Correct, correct.
Work, work.
And it could be something,
because those are easier places too,
that there could be an opportunity in the future
or it's up to the commission to decide.
Maybe there's an artist who has a concept for outside,
and then something that relates inside,
or maybe we just at this point don't know
because we're not at that point in the process,
we don't know what artists will come up with.
So I think that it's hard to make those decisions
until we see what we get with regards to proposals
that are site-specific.
We'll get to that point in the artist selection process.
Can I ask just a follow-up, Vice Chair?
so are you asking that if the interior locations
aren't selected tonight,
are you asking whether there'd still be an opportunity
later down the road to install a mural, for example,
on the wall inside the building or the lobby?
Yes, Kevin, I think I'm,
what I'm, the tension that I'm holding
is that we've identified 10 really incredible spaces
to have public art,
which would make the aperture for the artist
be kind of more grandiose and exciting to think about how they might submit, but I'm
also like it's a missed opportunity if we have a mural wall that doesn't become a mural
wall or a mosaic wall and like how could we just think as forward as possible about ways
that we can incorporate public art that maybe isn't as permanent. You know I think about
floor I think about different kinds of adhesive materials or things that are a little bit more
temporal to be able to keep one just public art center in these large community spaces
and because you've identified such incredible spots you know I'm a little bit of I'm a both
a fan person.
So I'm just trying to weigh out the options.
Senator Lemo.
I have a question regarding, if we
were to select all of the spaces or a certain amount of spaces,
and maybe the budget wasn't enough
to fill all of those spaces, then who
would the decision kind of fall back on?
Would it be the Public Art Committee
or would it go back to the Arts Commission?
Like, for example, if we selected all 10 of the spaces
and we thought that all of them were great,
but then the budget could not cover all of those spaces.
Would it be the public art committee's decision
to kind of narrow down which spaces
they wanted to put the art in,
or would it go back to the arts commission?
So the first step, it'll go to the artist selection panel,
which is a panel that's comprised of one arts commissioner,
which is Sarah, and city council member,
and then we have arts professionals on that.
And after they look at all of the different proposals,
it will be, you know, and part of the proposal
is that the artist does have to submit a budget
so that we know that they're working within the budget.
And so I think that this is gonna be a puzzle
that we look to the artist selection panel
to kind of put together based on what proposals they receive.
Thank you.
Yeah, I had a question in regards to the,
trying to work this,
the second option for the lawn
out on the northeast corner of North San Carlos Drive
and Heather Drive,
I believe the,
a piece of some kind of artwork.
I don't believe that's part of the public art collection.
I just wanted to know, and for the new art
that's being proposed, where is that going to be
in terms of placement in relation to what's existing?
Is that piece right now that's already there,
is that gonna be moved somewhere else?
Or what do we think about that?
Good questions, yes, you are correct.
There is a piece out there right now
by artist Bruce Johnson, and it is owned by the city.
is in the city's permanent collection and because of the way the work is out
there, there is the option that it could be potentially moved to a higher
visibility site. That's completely doable. This lawn area is so big that, in fact,
the Bruce Johnson piece is in this image but you can't even see it so I don't
I don't think that it will conflict if there's a different piece put here, which is, yeah.
We haven't chosen the artist or the pieces that would be going there but between the
lawn of the water pond and the playground. It's such an open space. I'm just wondering now in
terms of when we're thinking about the art that will be placed there with, I'm not even sure if
this is a good time to ask that, but I just wanted to throw it out there. Are these concepts we're
thinking about interactive. It just seems like it's such a busy area. I cannot
imagine like a standalone art there at the time being, but is this something
we're considering as part of, you know, placement-wise? Mm-hmm. So the RFQ did
kind of outline, we are number one open to all ideas that artists submit to us,
and if somebody were to submit something that is more of a placemaking, you know,
piece of work that is interactive, that would be up to the Commission to
approve that piece. And like you said, we are so early in this stage that we have
just, you know, closed the applications and we haven't received any proposals
yet, but yeah, I think that that's a great opportunity, that site, for a big
place making interactive work, it just depends on what what some artist artist
team proposes. Commissioner Tesfaye, if I can add on page four of your staff report,
we do have several criteria listed there, which are just guidelines, but they may
help the Commission and the selection panel think about what is within a
specific location like this, which you're right is is broad, there's lots of on
on there, which makes the most sense.
And so a lot of this is kind of this balance
between being very specific about,
you're going to put it right here, right?
Which could limit the artist's vision.
And so we're trying to be broad,
but also have some guidelines that would help the artist
and the panel and the commission identify
what's the most effective location within that.
And so these will guide the selection panel
and hopefully guide you when this comes back to you
with the concept and other refinements.
So this is also a significant opportunity
and we're not quite sure exactly what the best place is
for it, and so we're trying to be as broad as possible
without being the entire park.
Hi, so I have another question.
Would all of the art that is chosen
be permanent installations, or would it be,
for example, some of the interior spaces,
would it be rotating, kind of like Duncan Arcade
on Main Street, would it, yeah, that's my question.
Yes, so we're seeking something that would be permanent,
but I think that you're right.
If it were a mural, there might be a life,
I mean, there's a life expectancy on,
unfortunately, on all work,
but the idea is that something that would be substantial
for generations of people to enjoy
for years to come into the future.
So yes, when we get into that part of the process
where we're looking at fabrication and material,
and those are all things
that will be taken into consideration.
we don't wanna spend a million dollars
and have it disappear overnight
because it disintegrates or something, so yes.
Yeah, but not rotating art, yeah.
Okay, thank you, and then just one more thing.
I think we were talking about this last meeting
in January about a concept.
Was there a concept for the general artwork
to be kind of themed around, or is it up to the artist
to choose kind of, and it's their creative freedom?
Yes, it's up to the artist.
So in the RFQ, we kind of wrote about Walnut Creek
and what kind of a community this is and the geography here,
the people who live here.
And then we're hoping that artists will take that
into consideration and it's really up to them
to decide how they best want to show their work.
Okay, thank you.
Are there any other commissioner questions?
Could you talk to us about the artist selection process and tell us where we are with that
and what happens now that the timeline or the date for submitting their application
has closed?
Yes.
So we published the RFQ.
We received 161 applicants and the next step, so now that's closed, and we did receive Commissioner
Balthazar had asked where they're from, and we looked through, and I think that we said
it was like 60-ish from California, 19 international artists representing different countries throughout
the world which is exciting and the rest US but we you know we had a great we
thought we had a great turnout of people applying so the next step is we'll be
meeting with the artist selection panel and they will be reviewing the entry or
the applicants and from there we will take their recommendation to call it
down to ten qualified artists and from there they'll interview up to ten and
hold interviews to learn more about their practice and their process and
their experience and what they might have in mind and then after that step
it'll get taken down to five that they wish to invite to submit formal
proposals up to five because the budget will allow for us to compensate five
artists for formal proposals. So it's the form panel that will go through the
hundred and sixty applications. So staff has met and eliminated some that were
just not qualified based on you know not answering the right questions but yeah
they have a lot to get through and we're very grateful to the panel for yeah it's a lengthy
process and then we'll be meeting again and they'll the panel will make a recommendation
to the commission and then it will be up to the commission to approve or not the projects
and we'll invite the artists at that time too to present their their work the top finalists
semi-finalists. I have a question for Commissioner Baltazar. Has the selection committee met in person
yet? And have you been out to the sites just to kind of see the sites together or to see the park
together? Mariah, if I have this wrong, feel free to call up to me. I've met with the commission or
the panel, the artist selection panel, once. We did not visit the site. I personally have
visited the site, although one doesn't exist yet. And we have not met since pretty much the
top of the spring, maybe. So it's been some time because there was a little bit of a hold
the actual plan for Heather Farms getting approved. So we're kind of, we
reconvened a little bit online via email once the RFQ went live. And since then,
you know, this is kind of the first we're all hearing about the efforts for
outreach and applicants. Yep, that's correct. We've met once and then we
will meet again on July 31st.
I'm like, I don't have that invite.
I emailed an invite.
You should have it.
Please check your email.
Yeah, you should have it.
But I can refoward you the meeting invite and everything.
Yes, July 31st.
And that's the first meeting, or I mean, the first.
Yeah, to look at the artist submissions, yeah.
And is there a thought that you eventually
will go out with the selection panel together with you
and look at some of these sites once you narrow it down.
So maybe even the artists go out with you.
I don't know.
Does that happen?
We may.
The tricky part about these selection panels
is they are noticed Brown Act meetings.
And so for us to go out on site, we'd have to notice that.
So what we're encouraging people to do
is go out individually.
Artists and selection panel members,
most have a connection already to Walnut Creek
that they live here.
They've done work here or they're just familiar with it.
But yes, people are encouraged to look at that.
as the commission when it comes down to it.
We're ready for a commission or comments?
Commissioner Mow?
For the site locations, I like, could I say,
I like the idea of a mix of interior and outdoor spaces
because if the site locations are just limited
to the outdoor locations,
it also limits the artists that we can choose from
because a lot of the outdoor art
in the form of sculptures and things like that and some artists are more
drawn to murals and I think a mixture of both would be really nice to have to
showcase all different forms of art.
Commissioners have comments?
Commissioner Magnani.
Thank you. I like all of the outdoor sites. I think they're spectacular and I would love to see
public art on all of those sites, but as far as limiting it to that, it also seems a shame
to build this magnificent new community center and not also have art there.
So, I mean, it's a, you know, it's an abundance of riches, I guess.
Obviously, we can't spread ourselves too thin and get a lot of little things that don't
add up to anything, but at this stage, I guess I don't really see an advantage to limiting
the process by eliminating any of the sites, even though, you know, we might think they're
some or less attractive than others for various reasons.
Thank you.
Commissioner Tessbury?
I just wanted to add, I thought it would be, I would have loved to see an option
for the garden. I think we have such a beautiful space there. I didn't see it on
the map or it wasn't disclosed, so I think that's a missed opportunity. It's
such a beautiful space that lends itself aesthetically to a piece of artwork
there with the water creek fall and it's a space that I take my children off in
and then I would love to see a piece of art there.
I think that would be a great option.
If you'd like, I can speak to that.
Yes, that is owned by the city.
That's part of Heather Farm Park.
And it's operated by a nonprofit, which
is separate and apart from the city of Walnut Creek,
the gardens at Heather Farm.
And so they have a vision for how
they want to carry out their programs, rentals,
and education and propagation.
And so we're respectful of that.
And so if in the future they approach us and say, hey,
We'd love to partner with you on public art or others.
We'd be open to that, but we did not want to go to them
and say, hey, we're putting art in your program.
So I agree, it's beautiful.
And how do we make it better?
That's a conversation we can have in the future,
but yeah, we chose not to pursue that at this time.
Commissioner Clauber.
Yeah, so thank you.
Thank you for your presentation, it was really good.
I'm happy that the artist selection panel
is going to go through all of the applications.
So that's great to hear that that is going to happen
because there's more of an opportunity for more eyes
around everybody who took their time to apply
for this spot.
I think we should think about the idea of a combination
and maybe some artists that the panel,
It loves their art, enjoys what they have in mind.
They could come up with one art for one location
and then another artist that is selected.
Also could be doing something else.
Maybe there is a combo.
Maybe it works out that way,
but just to come up with, you know,
to throw it out as a possibility.
but my gut tells me that I would love to see a very large,
like, stake on the ground.
This is Walnut Creek and we care about arts,
and for that to happen, it could be,
I would love for like a, what we call a signature piece
to come together at a most public spot.
That to me seems to be that corner on Ignacio
and the entry to the park.
So we'll see what happens.
That's exactly, that's what I like to see obviously.
You know, once someone comes up with their idea,
then things can change.
But I think we should go for that,
something big, something substantive
for Walnut Creek there, if possible.
Thank you. Commissioner Balthazar, comments? Yes, thank you. Let me see if I can lower my hand.
There we go. I agree with all of the commissioners and I just want to add if possible as we move
closer to the request for proposal phases that we can add something about the mix of spaces that
are available and the fact that some of the interior spaces might be able to be sourced
more sustainably and be at a lower cost so we can get a really lovely mix of interactive outdoor
and indoor public art and if some of those questions might be able to be answered in a proposal
and we keep all of these spaces as an option, we might find or we will find the right artist
that has the right vision that can align with a lovely $953,500 budget.
I do think that airing on the side of sustainability in general is something that's really
important for this proposal moving forward. So I'm just a bit more inclined in keeping
all of the spaces open and thinking about how we can ask artists in this next phase to consider
how one or two or three spaces might work together in their submissions.
Thank you. Has everyone had a chance to comment? Who wants to comment or any further questions?
Then I will give my comments. Thank you Commissioner Clauber and Commissioner Balthazar for
I'm summarizing how I feel about this as well.
I think we, I'd like to see all the locations kept open,
but in the, when it comes right down to it,
I wanna see a big, bold,
eye-stopping piece that people talk about
when they leave Heather Farm.
And that probably is a sculpture in one of those five,
I think there's five outdoor locations.
But I would like to see art on or in the facility,
but that that might be more murals, it might be mosaic,
it's gonna be maybe a slightly lower price
because there's no way we can do 10 locations
for a million dollars.
We're gonna have to,
this artist selection panel's gonna have to be very careful
on how they choose their artists.
And that said, if you happen to choose several artists
and you're able to come in with budget,
it'd be nice if the art has a little bit of thread
between it, so if somebody's working in copper,
maybe another artist is working
with a little bit of copper tutus to tie things together
if there's some different locations,
if we can afford to do more than one location outside.
But I'm hopeful, when we finish this project,
there's a big, bold, phenomenal piece somewhere
outside of the building,
and then there's smaller projects going on
in and on the building.
Great.
Thank you all for your comments.
Super helpful.
And yes, so, if, who?
We need a motion. Who would like to make a motion to approve
locations? And if it helps, you don't need to make a motion
that reads every one of those. It could restate the recommendation from the public art committee
as well as staff regarding both indoor, how do I say this, regarding all indoor and outdoor
sites as recommended by staff in the public art committee, something like that.
Sorry if that was garbled, but I'm trying to make it easier for you even though it doesn't
sound like it.
You're mentioning the recommended actions area of this?
Yeah.
I'll make a motion.
I make a motion to approve the potential site locations referenced here today for our work
at the new Heather Farm Park Aquatic Park Aquatic and Community Center and surrounding
park areas as recommended by staff.
As recommended by staff and the public art committee?
And the public art committee.
Okay.
So is that all understood that that's both indoors and outdoors?
okay are we ready for a vote i want to see if monica took down what the motion was i can remake
the motion if we might we might have it yeah i'm just having to restate the motion before we do a
second um so just just so i'm cleared so what i heard you say commissioner clover is um uh the
motion is to approve the indoor and outdoor sites as recommended for the new heather farm
aquatic and community center um as recommended by staff and the public art committee
That is correct. Okay. I will call the roll. Commissioner Clauber? Yes. Chair Dresser? Yes.
Commissioner LeMot? Yes. Commissioner Tesfaye? Yes. Commissioner Magnani? Yes. And Vice Chair Balthazar?
Yes. Motion carries unanimously. Thank you. And the staff really appreciates your work on this. This
This is one of several times that we will be coming back to you.
This is very exciting and a huge opportunity, as has been said, to create work that will
be around for the next, you know, the existing building has been here for 50 years.
Hopefully, it won't be 50 years for the next one, but let's say decades, so you will have
a significant impact on the community and this is the first step of that, so thank you.
Thank you, Mariah.
Thank you.
At this time I invite staff to provide presentations.
All right, it gets to stay here.
Does my clicker work from here?
Hey, Matt, do you have a second?
I was trying to pull up the second column.
It's, uh, oh.
I am here to give you your, um, give some public art updates.
So first up, we have our beloved piece, Fountainhead by, um, Sayyed Alavi.
It was temporarily removed in March for conservation.
It is still under conservation.
It's been quite a process.
This is Fountainhead going away.
And here's Fountainhead in the studio
where it's being worked on.
It was so waterlogged that it had
to wait a very long time to dry out.
And then they could finally, once it was not soggy,
put it into the oven to finish baking completely
to thoroughly dry out.
So there is the little temperature thing.
And there it is baking.
And so then once it was dried, they
were able to really focus on the structure
and fully, fully cleaned it out from the inside
and sealed the inside really well and did different.
They had to sand it down and give it some primer,
sand it down again, and so it's been a really lengthy process, as you can imagine.
It is expected to be returned later this summer, probably realistically September.
And as you remember, in January Nigel Sussman, this has been a very long process, this mural,
but he completed the mural in January, just had some rain, you know, setbacks, and then
then we decided to host a celebration for him in the spring when the weather was nice
again.
And it was, the artist was really happy that we came out to celebrate and support him in
his artwork, and we also had council members there, arts commissioners, community members,
staff, and Assembly Member Rebecca Bauer-Cahan came to talk about art, and she's happy to
to have art in her community, because her son actually
goes to this gym.
So for his basketball, her little, one of her little kids.
So that was a fun celebration to honor
the artist in this new amazing mural
that he did for the city titled Where's Walnut Creek?
So we've talked to you about one call for art.
We actually have another call for art right now.
It's open.
It is for the city is collaborating
with Downtown Walnut Creek Association
in efforts to refresh all of the big belly trash cans that
are placed throughout downtown, the recycling and trash cans.
And there is actually plans to add from Recycle Smart,
a couple that actually have composting features as well.
So these are green.
They're lit by solar.
They automatically stamp down the trash,
and you can kind of monitor them all this way.
So the project should be great.
So we have this call is open until August 7th,
and it's a pretty simple one because the artists
are just being asked to submit a high-res image
of their artwork.
And that can be scanned, then printed onto vinyl,
and wrapped onto these big bellies.
And so this is a temporary work project
because they probably will last estimating
depending on which location they're in,
how much sun they get, two to three years.
That's up online.
So this is one that was done already,
but this was paid for and done, not by us,
but it is downtown, and so this is an example
of what it could look like.
Also, we did discuss this briefly at the last meeting.
We have our mural matching grant out,
and we have actually made postcards.
So I was gonna give you all a postcard
because we have new promo materials,
if you know of anybody and wanna pass it out,
or maybe you just wanna put it on your refrigerator
because it's a pretty piece to look at,
and the graphic designer made this image
using some different pieces of existing murals in the city.
So that is up online.
And we have also updated and revised our developer guide.
This is for a reference for all developers in the city.
And we kind of made this nice.
This is a piece that is out at John Muir Hospital, which
we talked about last time.
But I have those to give you as well, part of me as well.
And that is it.
Any questions about any of those projects?
I have a question about the wraps,
the call for art for the big bellies.
Are we also going to ask for new art for the utility boxes
or is it specifically for big bellies?
This is specifically for big bellies.
And will any of the existing big bellies
that have art on them, will that art be changed out
or is it only for the big bellies
that have no art on them right now?
So they're gonna be changed out.
Currently they have these acrylic frames
that are screwed into the big bellies
and they're quite weathered
And so we'll be getting rid of those.
And it was determined by the Special Projects Committee
and by Downtown Walnut Creek Association
that it would be more impactful
to rather than have these framed acrylic pieces
on just either end of the big belly
to instead fully wrap it
and make it look like a little art project.
That's great.
And the mural matching grant program,
we all have a location that we'd like a mural
on a wall opposite Jen Lewin's dichroic glass pieces.
Can we all drop our postcards off at Mr. Lucky's?
I think they're all over.
You're welcome to.
All with a little note.
We'd love you to put a mural up here.
We'll match x amount of money.
That would be great, yes, because we
would love to have applicants for this grant.
It's up to $5,000, and we would love to see more hurt downtown.
And it's actually not just limited to downtown.
It's throughout the whole city.
So if you know of some other site on the other side
of the city that has a blank wall that
could benefit from art, let me know.
Thank you very much.
Any other questions?
I just wanted to ask the grant, the mural grant matching,
is that for outdoor and indoor?
It doesn't matter, the type of?
Good question.
I believe it's just for outdoor, not inside.
because it has to be publicly accessible
at all times of the day.
I had one more question.
The Big Belly project looks like it's a $500 stipend
for selected artists, which it seems like
they submit an image.
If the image gets selected, that's the image
that gets printed for these finals or what?
Okay.
It's a little rough in the summertime,
but this is such a great project to get youth involved in,
especially like rising seniors,
folks that are getting ready to apply for college.
It hits right at the start of the school year,
so it's not the best timing
to be able to recruit young people,
but things like this are a really great opportunity
for an aspiring young artist.
So I just want to reiterate how we might think
about timelines in the future,
because if this was just extended, for example,
to September 7th, you'd have about a month with,
we have at least four high schools of the area
that have our programs to just see
how we might get young people activated across the city.
Yep, I appreciate your comment.
And because this is a temporary project,
there will definitely be more opportunities
and then we can take that into consideration
for a next round of this or any other temporary projects.
Make note of it, we will make note of it.
Can you tell us what the developer guide entails?
Yes, so basically it's just for
when developers come to the city
they want to build a building here,
like let's say a huge condo complex.
It's really just to give them a guide so that they know that,
number one, there is a public art requirement.
There are some exceptions.
There's some people or some projects are exempt from this.
But private development that meets certain thresholds
is not exempt.
And so basically, it's just a little how-to on public art.
And yeah, that's what it is and in brief.
And neither commissioner comments or questions on Mariah's presentation.
Thank you very much. Great to get an update.
Can't wait for Fountainhead to be back. I know.
And now Carolyn's going to do a leisure center strategic plan update.
Thank you very much.
Good evening, commissioners.
Carolyn Jackson, general manager at the leisure center and welcome to our two
new commissioners. God to have you.
Typically, this is a standing item.
each meeting where I update sort of quarterly
where we are with our strategic plan.
But since we've got two new folks,
I'll give you like the super high level summary
of what we've done so far.
So in 2021, when the center was still closed,
we underwent a strategic planning process
to really evaluate how to be successful
coming out of pandemic closure,
how to continue to invite people back to our space
since large theaters, right,
were one of the last to reopen
after being one of the first to close.
So people were really out of the habit, right,
of coming to live arts entertainment.
And we worked with the DeVos Institute of Arts Management,
which is headed by Michael Kaiser,
former president of the Kennedy Center.
We were very fortunate that he was the lead consultant
working with us on this plan.
So we certainly had some big brain energy
behind what could be possible for us
here at the Leshro Center.
And so that plan was accepted by City Council
in February of 2022.
So we're two plus years into it
and I'll give you some of the high level things
that we've accomplished.
First, we invested in some key staffing positions,
including appointing a new artistic director
for a center rep, establishing the center's
first full-time marketing supervisor position,
and adding a technical coordinator
to oversee some of our new presentations.
We launched those new presentations,
which is the Headliner series.
And this was a new model for the Lesher Center
where we are paying a flat fee to artists
to bring them here to us, rather than a rental scenario
where they might reach out to us and say,
I'll pay you a rental fee to come be in your space.
And this was a strategic approach, one,
to attract people back to the center
by bringing some world class big name artists
to Walnut Creek and to really allow us
to have a similar curatorial approach
as what we have at Bedford Gallery and Center Rep,
where our staff have the opportunity
to make artists selections,
to ensure that we're being equitable
and diverse in our selections,
and to bring things that are new to Walnut Creek,
not just what's rooted in our community,
but what is representative of the entire county.
So we launched the Headliners Series in 2022.
And that's been very successful
and brought a lot of wide ranging dance, music,
comedy, all sorts of different things.
And it's been definitely a learning curve for us
and our nonprofit partner,
the Diablo Regional Arts Association,
moving into presenting.
It's a very different model.
There's, of course, everything has changed about it
since the pandemic.
So there's not a lot that you could look back to
in terms of even other presenters in our region.
Everyone was kind of rediscovering
what this meant at the same time.
We created a more unified brand.
If you look back a couple years,
you'll notice that between Bedford Gallery Center,
Rep. Lesher Center,
Diablo Regional Arts Association,
they certainly didn't look like they were related
to each other in any way, shape, or form.
So we addressed that,
and we also unified our fundraising strategy,
really relying on Diablo Regional Arts Association
to be the lead there and launched some major initiatives,
including our most ambitious festival ever,
which was Fiesta Cultural.
We launched that last year
with multiple headliner performances,
activities in the gallery, a free street fair,
a whole range of experiences throughout the week.
When we brought back this summer,
We just closed that program on Saturday,
hugely successful bringing thousands of people
to the center and really showing a new community, right,
that the Lesher Center is also a home for them.
It's also somewhere where we produce art
that matters to them and their community.
This past year, we also launched
what we call Lesher Center in Your Neighborhood,
which is where we take the same amazing world-class artists
out of the center and into schools and community centers.
And so we've had numerous artists who did that
in the past year, including the concert truck,
which is two war class pianists
who converted a 16 foot box truck into a performance venue.
So anywhere you can park a truck,
you can have a performance.
So we brought that to schools and community centers
and to downtown when they were having a major event.
Again, getting those artists out from the center
into our community.
And so we're looking to expand that in the coming year.
We have some headliner artists who are coming to us
from out of town who will participate,
and we have some local artists who we will be engaging
to further expand that opportunity.
This spring, we also worked closely with the gallery
on the Red Road Project exhibition,
looking at how can we expand the themes
that are happening in the gallery
and take those into other mediums within the center.
So we had a panel, an artist discussion,
with a range of different artists
working in different mediums, including
Daniel Seawalker from the Red Road Project,
discussing what it's like to be a contemporary native artist,
what some of the challenges and opportunities are,
and what they'd like to see going forward in the future.
And we also hosted Good Medicine,
which is an all-native stand-up comedy night.
Again, tying back to the exhibition
as sort of the central piece that we then
built these auxiliary activities around.
So that's the high, high level of things
we've been doing for the last few years.
A lot more has been happening behind the scenes,
but we're really proud of what we've accomplished so far.
And as we look ahead, this coming season for Center Rep
is the first program to buy our new artistic director, Matt
M. Morrow.
And it's moving Center Rep into the world of new works.
We'll have two world premieres as part of our season.
And that includes, as well, a co-production,
which was another piece of the strategic plan for Center Rep,
was looking at how can we partner with other theaters
to have a similar impact utilizing less resources,
right, if we share resources.
So both going into new works and the co-productions
were identified in the strategic plan
and are something that will happen this coming season.
As I said, we'll be expanding Lesher Center
your neighborhood. We'll also be continuing to invest and expand our
education programs which include on-site programs, the tours at the gallery,
different workshops at the gallery, the arts access school matinee performances,
really looking at how we balance both bringing people to us and giving them
opportunity to access the arts and bringing the arts to them through
Luscious Center in your neighborhood. We'll be we're in the process of
of selecting a software for an integrated marketing
and fundraising software.
Currently, DRAA operates their own software.
The center operates the ticketing software,
which means we don't have a full picture of how people
are engaging with us in our programs.
And so we'll be looking to integrate those two pieces.
We're currently in the process of reviewing softwares
and completing that selection.
And we'll be continuing to deepen our marketing
strategies. Our marketing supervisor is just shy of nine months with us, I think,
and if any of you have marketing in your backgrounds, that is not a lot of time to
get some structure and some, you know, strategies in place. So we're really
going to see in this coming year the impact of the work that he's been able
to do since starting with us. We'll start to see the return on that investment as
as we see more folks coming through the doors
for all of our activities.
That's my strategic plan update.
Happy to answer any questions.
Thank you, Carolyn.
Questions?
I have one about the
the Lusher Center in the neighborhood.
Mm-hmm.
So is that limited to downtown
or is that it can go anywhere in Walnut Creek?
It can go anywhere, including anywhere in the county.
We're really looking at it as a regional opportunity
to bring the center out to our entire community,
especially to Title I schools and to different community
organizations like Choice in Aging, folks who may not
have an opportunity to come on site to us,
that we're able to bring art to them.
And how often?
So we had four artists involved since January, essentially,
until now.
And so as we look to expand that,
I would expect that we're getting upwards
in the 10 to 12 artists over the course
of the next few years.
Interesting.
Do they come with like taco trucks and stuff like that?
Yeah, maybe.
We'll add that to the list.
Any other commissioner questions or comments for Carolyn?
I have a question.
Fiesta Cultural, this is now second year,
I know you're right on the heels of it.
The flags were beautiful, Eric.
They're spectacular to see those flags up there.
What have you learned between year one and year two
of the whole week's presentations?
What a great question.
We're really comparing sort of the balance
between the indoor and outdoor activity.
The street fair has been hugely successful.
It's given us an opportunity to invest
and a lot of local artists, and to have them bring
their families and friends to the Lesher Center,
for them to have their first opportunity ever
to be presented by the Lesher Center.
So that we've seen just be right off the bat
hugely successful, and now we're looking at
how do we balance other indoor activity
with that outdoor fair?
How do we balance ticketed opportunities
with the free outdoor piece, and make it something
that's sustainable both in terms of financial resources,
but also in terms of staff resources.
It's an intensive week and we wanna make sure
that we're balancing as best we can
so that staff are able to enjoy as well as our patrons.
And this was the first year we had the opportunity
to bring the public art element together.
We discussed it the first year
and there were so many moving parts.
It just was not possible.
So it was really exciting to see again,
that's part of the strategic plan,
where are we finding those areas
where we can unify all of our programs
and show that we are a collective arts center,
we're not only performing arts or only visual arts.
Thank you, I'm super excited about the coming year.
I have one more question.
You talked about the unified brand project, how's that?
How did that get?
are we there? Are we where we want it to be? And how is it going?
It's continually evolving because we were balancing again the fact that we
have programs that have an identity, that have existing followers, and we
weren't trying to kind of eliminate those recognizable features, but we want
folks to have a sense of, you know, there's more than just that program
happening. They might enter as a center rep ticket buyer, but then they see that
there's this whole other series of activities.
So visually, it's unified in that we unified basic things
like the fonts in terms of some of the colors that we use.
And then when we redid the Luscher Center website
as part of this whole rebrand, we really
integrated Center Rep and Bedford Gallery into that
so that if your first entry point is the Luscher Center
site, you see the full scope of what's happening.
Previous to that, it was really just performance-based,
and it wasn't inclusive of our other education programs.
It was inclusive of the visual art component.
So it was a way that, if that's your entry point,
leisureartsenter.org, then you see the full breadth.
And if your entry point is bedforgallery.org,
that you have that tie-back and opportunity
to connect to the broader leisure site.
So it's really kind of a constantly evolving animal.
And something, too, about how we present our information.
So like now we do a unified annual report
when we bring our annual report to the Arts Commission.
That used to be three separate program reports, right?
But now we're able to display collectively
here's the impact that we're having
with all of our programs.
And the same thing we do a season brochure now
that's inclusive of all of our programming
so you can see really the full breadth of what we're doing.
So it's a constantly evolving and developing story.
I like that, thank you.
do we have plans to continue in the future
to use the strategy person, I think you called it,
the law center, I think that was the name.
So we haven't discussed revisiting a strategic plan.
This is a five year plan and we're two-ish years into it.
And as with all things, you get going
and you learn new things and some things evolve.
So there's still items in the plan
that we haven't yet gotten to.
And so I think we'll probably want to kind of take
a collective pause after maybe another year or so to see,
is there still enough here that we wanna be moving forward
or has either something outside of the plan changed
or something internal to us changed that we feel like
we really should refocus and establish a new plan?
Thank you. You're welcome.
I had a question in regards to the Fiesta.
I've watched it online on the socials.
It looked really beautiful.
I wish I could have been a part of it.
I just wondered if I know that's part of the five-year plan,
whether it's in the five-year plan or later,
if there are any other plans to make it more inclusive
where you're also having other multicultural opportunities
out of Latin America.
Yes.
Thank you for teeing up a future marketing opportunity.
Yes, one of the things we're looking at in terms of learnings
from Fiesta Cultural and really appropriately
sizing the resource is so that we can open up opportunity
for the next focus area for us, which
is going to be a festival of South Asian arts.
So again, it's like we're using these two years
to understand how can we keep Fiesta sustainable and still
exciting and growing while being able to then
add an additional major program.
Sounds exciting.
Thank you.
You're welcome.
of Altazar. I can't see if you raise a hand. Are you good? I'm great, thank you.
Right, super. Carolyn, thank you very much. You're welcome. I'll stand right here
till you say staff updates on projects. I think that's next. Right, it's time for staff
updates on projects. I might have a few updates. So this Thursday is the final
summer sounds outdoor concert of the season. We're bringing back a young
She was a fan of Favorite at College Notes this year if you happen to be at that event.
So she'll be back outdoors at the Lesher Center 530 on Thursday.
That's free.
And seats are first come, first serve.
Then on August 17th, we're partnering again with Center for Community Arts to bring their
Family Art Day to the Lesher Center Plaza.
So we'll have art making stations all throughout the plaza.
We'll have some performances that happen.
There'll be activities happening in the gallery, as well as a quiet room, a quiet kind of cool
down room in the Vukassan that the library is partnering with us on, so it'll be a really
fun free day for families to get out and make some art.
Our new headliner series, September and Beyond, is on sale now and you can save 20% if you
We choose one of our preset bundles, so it gives you a chance to maybe identify an artist
that you know and love and learn about someone new.
And then Center Rep single tickets go on sale for Center Rep's upcoming season on July 24th,
but today we celebrated Christmas in July and released a Christmas carol ticket early.
So if you want the best seats, your top pick of date, get to lusciousartscenter.org to make
that purchase sooner rather than later, especially because the way the holidays
kind of rounded out this year we're losing a few performances which means
really get ahead on your on your purchase if you want to see a Christmas
carol. Is there a code or anything people need to make a purchase before the 24th?
There is a code that people need to buy a Christmas carol tickets and it's July
snow. That's my updates. Thank you very much. Thank you. I think we have gallery
the update from Emily?
Good evening, commissioners.
Emily Enders, Bedford Gallery curator.
Mariah talked about the mural matching grant postcard
and the developer brochure,
so I'm gonna pass these around for you guys to have.
Okay, just a few quick updates from me.
So some of you were there,
but we opened Cut, Paste, Create on July 6th.
There were over 250 people at that opening,
so it was very crowded, very wonderful.
Net has work in the show if you would like to go see it.
And Jill will be giving, hopefully,
some youth tours in September.
And along those same lines, because schools
start so early this year, we are doing some school
tours in September, and we are pretty much fully booked.
So hopefully that bodes well for the rest of our season
with school tours.
We have a couple of events and workshops coming up.
One is actually this weekend.
It is a collage workshop with Susanna Sanchez,
who is one of the artists in Cup Paste Create.
And she's doing a family-led workshop
where you kind of create your own family collage.
So that's happening this Saturday, the 27th at 10.30.
I will also be there.
Pretty sure this is August 29, not July 29.
So August 29 at 5.30, we're having our next Cocktails
and Conversations series with one of the jurors
from Cup Paste Create.
So that has been a very successful series
that we launched last year.
and we are continuing on through this season as well.
So for every exhibition, we invite someone
to come in and talk about either their artwork
or the exhibition with cocktails and food.
And then in September, we will have a yoga event
in early in that month, right before we close.
There's probably better details on our website,
so I don't have those at this moment,
but it's either the seventh or the eighth in the morning.
So stay tuned for those.
And then Cutpace Create closes in mid-September,
and then we close for a standard two weeks,
and we reopen this fall with about abstraction.
Nope, drawn to abstraction.
About abstraction, we already did.
So drawn to abstraction is prints
from the 60s and the 70s, and it includes some really heavy
hitters from the 20th century.
So Helen Frankenthaler, Ellsworth Kelly, I'm looking at you, Net.
And a lot of other very famous names that you would recognize from the art world.
And then if we don't meet, just in case, Craft Fest is returning for its hundredth year.
Just kidding.
I believe it's our 15th year.
It's a very beloved community program that we have every year.
So we invite about 30 crafters, between 30 and 35 crafters, to come into the gallery
sell their wares for a full day extravaganza. Last year was our biggest
year to date. We had about 4,500 people come through. If you were there, you would
know it was very crowded and wonderful. And so we're hoping for a return on that
as well. So that is Saturday, November 23rd from 10 to 5. And that's it.
Thank you very much. Is Craft Fest again on a day where there's performances in
in the Lesher Center so we can have lots of people
coming through?
Absolutely.
So we intentionally work with the Lesher Center
and their schedule and make sure that we choose a day
so that there's many, many people already coming
to the Lesher Center for holiday activities.
And we have some thoughts on kind of how to expand that
out into the plaza this year.
We will see if we can make that happen.
Thank you very much.
I have a question.
Yes, I will stay here.
About the event where the artists come and talk about the art event, is that
after the event is closed or is that during the event? Cocktails and
Conversations? Yeah. So that one is specifically for Cut, Paste, Create and so
that will be about three weeks before the exhibition closes. So it's on August
29th, which is like two weeks before we close Cut, Paste, Create. Okay. And then
And we'll have another one for Drawn to Extraction during the exhibition.
Yep.
Awesome.
Any other questions for Emily?
Comments?
Thank you, Emily.
You are busy.
You and Carolyn are very busy and I love the collaboration that you're doing.
Kevin.
Okay.
Thank you.
I have two updates.
One from another busy person, Miley Ogasar Garcia, who's the manager at the Center for
Community Arts, Shatland's Arts Center.
So Carolyn already mentioned the Family Art Day,
which is a joint production of all of our arts programs.
That's Saturday, August 17th,
from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. on the Plaza, right?
In the Plaza, yeah, it's all day outdoors.
It's free.
And then the other event is the Center for Community Arts
is celebrating its 60th year, 60 years,
which is fabulous, a testament to the amount of support
Walnut Creek has provided and still provides to the arts here in our community.
So there's an event that we're doing to celebrate, we're calling it Artist Connect.
So we will combine the celebration with artist talks.
So Wednesday, August 28th from 6 to 8 p.m. out of the Shadelands Auditorium.
So I will have artists kind of speaking about their relationship to our program or their
connection to the community.
We'll also have food there for people.
So feel free to come along, it's, like I said, it's free for you and the community.
So that's the update from Miley.
And then for myself, just following up a little bit on what we are talking about with the
Ready Heather Farm, I just want to give you some dates for that in terms of public meetings.
So the project's moving forward.
I will begin with the end, which is sometime in late 2027 is when we'll open the new facility.
2027, it seems like it's far away, but it's been moving along pretty quickly.
We are in the design phase, as Mariah said,
we are taking the final components of the design,
which we've moved from conceptual
to design development, as we call it.
So it'll be going to the design review commission.
So commissioner McNally will see that in August,
as you represent the commission to DRC.
So that'll come in August to design review.
We're going to the park recreation
open space commission in September.
We'll be going to the city council
for the final approval of the design in October.
So once that happens, full steam ahead,
we get the construction documents put together,
go up to bid, start construction.
So Heather Farm will be a very busy place for construction.
We will be closing the community center at Heather Farm
in the first quarter of next year
to start the demolition and construction.
We will keep the pool open throughout this whole process
or intend to.
Fingers crossed we remain open at a 50 plus year old pool,
but we're excited for that.
And then for you, for the Arts Commission,
as you saw in your staff report,
the public art components will be coming back to you
in likely November.
And so it's all moving forward at the same time,
integrated with the construction.
If the panel and the commission ultimately chooses a site
outside of the construction site,
we will have a different path for that,
but we'll still target to open around the same time
as the facility opens.
So, exciting times here in Wanna Creek,
exciting times for this department,
exciting time for this commission.
So thank you all for your support.
I have a question with the
Heather farm coming back to the Arts Commission November. We have an October meeting, right? Will we change that meeting?
Yeah, if we if we don't have any items for you specifically for the Commission in October
Which is to say a public art?
Consideration then we may cancel that meeting and have a special meeting in November
Was just too tight to get everything done by October to everything come back to you by then so we're targeting November
You know, that's that's our estimate if it if it slips a little bit, we'll let you know
But we don't have a date yet for that or do we?
Okay, so November 18th is tentative in the evening for that so six o'clock, but um stay tuned
But if you want to check your calendars, just hold that for now six o'clock
Remember 18th, that's a what day the week is up?
Okay, okay
We will let you know Monica will communicate that with you or Mariah will so stay tuned, but thank you for asking chair. Thank you
that's my report. Do we have all the staff updates? Now time to call on the
commissioners for individual updates. Well we'll close with those. Any commissioners have
updates of what they've been up to in the art world? Commissioner Klauber? I've
been to the San Francisco Modern Art Museum and I checked out the Sound of
music exhibit and that was fantastic and took
both my husband and I who's really into sound and he's an audiophile into the past and
with LPs and all the different types of
Music equipment
So that was really worth it and I recommend it
Have commissioners want to tell us what they've been up to
Mr. Magnani, I'll give you one if I can figure out how to tell it
Some time ago I lent a drawing to the Huntington Museum in Pasadena who had an exhibition of works of an artist who was a friend of my parents named Sergeant Johnson.
And this was a drawing of a commission that he executed at George Washington High School in San Francisco's 85-foot-long concrete mural with an athletic theme.
So the Huntington liked the piece and they said,
yeah, we'd like to borrow it.
And they spent a lot of money
putting a beautiful frame around it
and, you know, state of the art plexiglass.
And the show was on, it was a great success.
And then the show closed and they said,
well, we'll be sending it back to you.
And so now I have this,
instead of a rolled up piece of paper in my garage,
I've got this beautiful frame piece
that I just put up on a wall.
Thank you.
I have been up to public art walking tours.
I just gave tour number four on Saturday,
and we had 10 paid walkers
and one Bedford staff person come with us.
And tour number four is a little bit of Locust Street,
Main Street, and the library.
And we had a great group on this tour.
We spent a lot of time at Commissioner Tess Fay's mural
the library, and they found the tooth. It's my new look for the tooth, and I'd
say it's one of the better tours that I've done. Everyone was able to keep up
and they were really interested. I asked people where they were finding out about
the tours, and mostly in the nutshell, and a little bit of word of mouth. Tour
number one, which was in, I think April, had four walkers. I think you're on that
net with your daughter. Tour number two I think had somewhere around seven we're
kind of like seven to ten for the next tours after that and what we find is
that they grow as we get into the fall. So we start tour number one again in
August and we go through November to tour number four so if you haven't been
on one of our public art walking tours they're a great way to see the public
art in Walnut Creek and here's some anecdotes by Bedford-Doscent. I've been
into the openings of the Bedford shows.
This has been an amazing year of Bedford shows.
But I think my favorite show of Emily's reign
has been California Clay.
It just was a knock your socks off show.
And then followed by the Red Road Project,
which was phenomenal.
And one of the best things about the Red Road Project
is that we had several high school classes come and tour.
A commissioner of Lamont was in one of those classes.
I think I was very emotional when I was doing my introduction
to that class.
I apologize for that.
But this was a very passionate show, as Emily knows.
And I'm so glad that we had three or four AP US History
classes come.
Yeah, I think that sounds right.
To that show, it was wonderful.
And we had Los Alamos classes at California Clay as well.
So I know that Emily's staff is reaching out
to the high schools, and Los Alamos being the easiest one,
because we can actually find our teacher's names
and history names and inviting them to come
to take tours of the Bedford.
So I'm hoping that's gonna continue as we go forward
with more high schools.
And that's all I have for you.
Thank you.
Oh, now we're gonna move on to
Commissioner Lemoe and thank you
for serving on this commission.
Before I give my remarks, would any of the other
long-time commissioners like to give their remarks?
Former Commissioner Meredith, welcome.
Very different sitting out there.
So Skye, I just wanted to be here tonight to wish you luck
and tell you how proud I am,
what a great job you've been on the commission.
You've brought such poise and excitement
and a totally different perspective,
which I think the commission really appreciated.
So I wish you good luck in everything you do.
And if you decide to pursue architecture
like you and I talked about,
I think you'll be very good at that.
Architecture needs women, so I hope you,
good luck with that.
Thank you so much, that means a lot to me.
Thank you.
Sharon Clauber?
Yes, a standing ovation to you
for everything you've done here, thank you.
Your insights and your questions,
your thoughtful preparations were helpful for everyone
And you inspired me.
I know that you got us to think and move closer
to the public art goals here.
And I think that was just ultimately
what this is all about.
And I can't wait to see what your future brings.
And please keep in touch.
I will thank you, thank you so much.
So on behalf of staff, thank you, Skye,
for representing the youth of this community
in the most positive way possible.
You set the tone for everybody
who's gonna follow you on this commission.
We will have other student commissioners
who follow Skye after this.
And you set the bar really high.
Not just because of the questions you asked
and Emily remarking a while ago
that you asked a question of former public art manager,
Steve Huss, and you flustered him completely,
which is great, which is great.
And keep that up, right, ask good questions, be yourself,
and you were able to represent your perspective
in a very clear way that really made a difference for us.
And so we have a token of our appreciation
that Emily will speak to in a second.
Go ahead, you can.
Hi, Skye.
Thank you so much for joining us,
our very first Youth Arts Commissioner.
It was such a joy, and such an honor,
and such a pleasure to have you on this commission
for the time that we did.
Continue to fluster the unflusterable people.
It will get you places in life.
And please stay in touch.
We are so proud, and thrilled, and happy
to see where you go next.
And we wish that we could keep you
on the commission forever.
but we know we need to share your expertise
and your knowledge and your grace.
So thank you so much.
And we have a gift for you,
which is a public art sign,
which we have on the streets,
which for the other commissioners,
this is how we recognize outgoing commissioners
here for their service.
And so this is the same kind of sign
that you will see on the street.
And this is, with Sky, it's beautiful.
So Chair, back to you, thank you.
Mr. Baltazar, I know you're there.
I don't see hands raised.
Just yes, I'm echoing what everyone else said Skye, thank you so much for leading the
way for other young people to have a voice, not only in our commission, but in our communities
with our local elected officials and other folks that are making decisions. I think it's
extremely important to be able to hear you and your perspective and just yeah
you know don't desire to fit in keep pushing yourself to lead thank you so
much thing a sky thank you for your two years of service to the city of Walnut
Creek Arts Commission I hope that I speak for all the commissioners and
saying that we are fortunate that you apply to be the inaugural class of
youth commissioners, now called student commissioners.
From your first Arts Commission meeting,
you came prepared with relevant questions
and insightful comments.
I've been so impressed with your maturity
as you came to us as a sophomore in high school
and your ability to engage with fellow arts commissioners,
staff, and artists in an easy and yet professional manner.
You attended Bedford Gallery openings
and Luscious Century events
because you understood that Arts Commissioner
in Walnut Creek includes being present at events
other than the scheduled art commission meetings.
You set the bar extremely high
for the next student commissioner
and for what staff in the arts commission
has come to expect from the student commissioner role.
Thank you for your interest in the public art
of Walnut Creek and for your time,
curiosity, maturity, and professionalism.
I know I speak for both the past and present
arts commissioners when I say we thank you
and wish you much success in your senior year at Los Llamas,
your quest to study architecture in college,
and all of your future endeavors.
And we hope that as you come and go from Walnut Creek,
you feel pride in our public art,
especially that in which you got to play a part.
All the best to you.
Thank you so much.
You, okay, can I say my part now?
Thank you.
It has been an absolute honor to serve
on the Walnut Creek Arts Commission.
As Commissioner Dresser mentioned, I started two years ago
And at first I was super nervous going into it.
It was a pilot program called A Seat at the Table
and no other youth has done this before.
But I have had some amazing people
that I've had to work with,
staff, Mr. Safeen, Ms. Logan,
and then all of my fellow commissioners
and commissioners that served prior,
Commissioner Meredith and Emmanuelle.
And I just, a big thank you to all of you
for making my experience so wonderful and great.
I've learned a lot from each and every one of you.
And this, I'm just very grateful to have this opportunity.
I've learned so much about the city
and so much more about public art.
And I will continue to think about this opportunity
and what I've learned and use it in my future.
So thank you so much.
You are so welcome.
Meeting is adjourned.