Public Art Commission

Minutes of a Regular Public Art Commission Meeting December 12, 2018 A regular meeting of the Blue Springs Public Art Commission was held on Wednesday, December 12, 2018 at the Fieldhouse. The Chairman called the meeting to order. Eleanor Frasier – Present Parks Dept. Staff: Justin Stuart Ramon Magee – Present City Council Liaison: Dale Carter- Present Jeff Carpenter – Present Community Member: Barbara Landes Kathe White – Present Larry Randall - Present Greta Hoener – Present Kerri Cole – Present A motion was made by Ramon Magee and seconded by Kathe White to accept the Minutes of the November 14 meeting; it passed unanimously. Public Art Commission Financial Report: The financial report was presented for review. There was a request by Ramon for more information regarding the fees that are charged to the Spring For Art fund. Staff will gather information to present to the PAC at the next meeting. Information/Updates/Status: Eleanor reported that “Breath” has been re-sited by Larry Randall and installed at the newly renovated Mid-Continent Public Library on the south side of Blue Springs. Parks staff also re-painted the plaque and installed it with the piece. “Fire, Earth and Water” removal and restoration status- Staff will work to contact the Adams Pointe Conference Center to discuss the piece of art and explore options for getting it re-installed at the Conference Center. People’s Choice for “Capricious”- Ramon made a motion and it was seconded by Kerri to end the People’s Choice voting on December 31. A certificate will be developed and sent to the winning artist after the voting closes. The Chase is currently leading the vote. “Partnership in “The Story of Blue Springs” 4th grade history project- Eleanor reported that she continues to work with a group to put together Blue Springs historical facts into a book that all 4th graders will receive in Fall of 2019. The book was possible due to a $15,000 grant to BS DAR with support and approval of BSSD. Veterans Way Memorial Bench Project- Rick Howell met with Eleanor, Randy Cooper, Roscoe Righter, and Justin at the Veterans Way Memorial to select site locations for the benches. There were two spots on each side of the Memorial that were selected. One bench purchased by Blue Springs DAR will be placed along the north walkway facing the road near the Submarine element. Th other bench, purchased with funds from the Mike Leap memorial will be placed near the Battlecross and facing Burr Oak Woods. Parks staff will work to install the benches when weather allows. The hope is to have the Mike Leap bench dedication on Vietnam Veterans Day(March 30, 2019) and the DAR bench to be dedicated on June 6, 2019 with is the 75th anniversary of D-Day. Jet Stream Land Lease- The land lease with MODOT where Jet Stream sits is expiring at the end of 2018. Staff is working with MODOT to get a new 10-year lease in place and the new contract is on the City Council agenda for December 17. Tax Exempt Status for Public Art Commission- There had been questions about the tax-exempt method used for public art donations. Eleanor referenced Section 120.155 of the City Ordinance 1 establishing the Public Art Commission which stated that “contributions made for public art are tax deductible under state and federal law”. Correspondence from Christine Cates, Assistant City Administrator, was referenced as well. Under Section 170 (C) (1) of the Internal Revenue Code, donations contributions or gifts to the State or any political subdivision given for exclusively public purposes are tax deductible. Since the PAC is under the jurisdiction of the City, any donor gifts toward art are tax deductible. A letter is sent to each donor thanking them for the donation and stating that it is tax deductible. Public Art Task Force: Ramon presented the Conservation and Restoration Task Policy to the PAC for their review and consideration of approval at the January meeting. The Task Force has reviewed the document and recommends approval by the PAC board. Jeff requested that the waiver be reduced to one page if possible. Eleanor asked all PAC members to review the document and be prepared to vote on changes or adoption of the policy at the January meeting. Informational Flyer for Adams Pointe Corridor Artworks: Kerri presented a draft flyer that will be used to promote the artwork in the Adams Pointe Corridor. There was discussion of the flyer and PAC members were asked to review the flyer and provide any feedback at the January meeting. Placing Artworks on public entities: Justin reported that Jackie Sommer, City Attorney had given her opinion regarding the possibility of placing public art on private property. Jackie said that it is allowable, but there needs to be policies and procedures put in place to allow for an open process to determine what businesses or private property owner may be selected to display public art. This process would include developing a policy that would define eligibility or parameters, develop a scoring or judging system, and developing a Request For Proposals that would be offered out to any interested individuals or businesses. After much discussion, Eleanor suggested that Michael Gaines, from the MACAA organization may be able to help the PAC through this process. Ramon made a motion and Larry second in support of Eleanor contacting MACAA to set up a time for Michael to come meet with the PAC to discuss this and give his input. Other Business- : Justin provided results of the Citizen Survey questions that were focused on public art. The results showed that 57% of respondents support public art, 40% did not support public art, and 3% were unsure. Justin also asked the PAC to consider putting items into the new time capsule that will be buried next to the 1976 time capsule at City Hall. The 1976 time capsule had to be moved due to renovations at City Hall and crews will be adding a 2019 time capsule next to it when it is put in the new location in January. Eleanor will provide some items such as the 10-year public art booklet and Veterans Way Memorial information for the time capsule. Visitors/Public Comment: None As there was no further business, a motion for adjournment was made by Ramon and seconded by Kerri. Meeting was adjourned at 5:04pm ___________________________________ Eleanor Frasier, Chairman 2