Lawrenceville Arts Commission

LAWRENCEVILLE ARTS COMMISSION MINUTES Tuesday, July 13, 2021 Third Floor GWMA Large Conference Room 6:00 PM 70 S. Clayton St, GA 30046 Call to Order The meeting was called to order at 6:06 PM recognizing a quorum. Approval of Agenda Motion to approve the agenda was made by Commission Member Walden, Seconded by Commission Member Fellows. Voting Yea: Commission Member Fellows, Commission Member Walden, Commission Member Sanders, Commission Member Abuaisheh Approval of Prior Meeting Minutes 1. Approval of Prior Meeting Minutes Motion to approve the prior meeting minutes was made by Commission Member Fellows, Seconded by Commission Member Abuaisheh. Voting Yea: Commission Member Fellows, Commission Member Walden, Commission Member Sanders, Commission Member Abuaisheh General Discussion 2. Uncle Jack’s Meat Tavern Building Sign Melissa Hardegree provided some background on Uncle Jack's Tavern, noting that this location's name is Uncle Jack's Tavern. She advised that Planning and Zoning asked the Arts Commission to recommend that the mural on the side of the building they currently occupy remain in place as is.  Motion to recommend that the Uncle Jack's mural that is currently on the side of their building remain in place, as is, was made by Commission Member Abuaisheh, Seconded by Commission Member Fellows. Voting Yea: Commission Member Fellows, Commission Member Walden, Commission Member Sanders, Commission Member Abuaisheh 3. Sub-Committee Discussions Commission Member Sanders briefly introduced the subcommittees, indicating they were a very effective way to work by breaking the larger group into smaller groups. These subcommittees include the Branding Subcommittee, Community Outreach Subcommittee and Grants and Funding Subcommittee. Commission Member Sanders will be asking for volunteers based on their knowledge, i.e. experience in writing grants would be on the Grants and Funding Subcommittee. She will follow up with the group to provide some additional information via e-mail and ask for volunteers so the subcommittees are in place by the next meeting. Commission Member Walden volunteered for the Community Outreach and Branding Subcommittees. 4. Branding Committee Update Melissa Hardegree has the completed logo that Golomb & Golomb worked on. Commission Member Sanders has the bio pages for the website and Melissa will be working on getting that information onto the web page. Headshots can be added to the bios, the pictures should be professional and those pictures can be taken at the next meeting. Lawrenceville Rocks: Commission Member Walden advised not much has changed. The Arts Commission had previously discussed items that they would need to purchase. She was able to get the cost down considerably. One problem is they are not sure how many people will show up, so it is hard to determine how much supplies they will need. The next step will be to bring the Rocks project to an event and Melisa Hardegree suggested that this would be a good fit for the School of Rock movie scheduled for July 30, 2021. Melissa suggested the possibility of posting on social media to solicit acrylic paint donations, however, the Arts Commission will need to determine how these donations will be collected. Commission Member Walden is working on items they could get donated and indicated that although rocks are still hard to find, she was able to locate some. Since there will be a small cost to obtain the supplies needed, the question was asked on how the Arts Commission would obtain those funds. The group would like to get a banner at some point, and the members for the Community Outreach Subcommittee will need to be filled quickly. Commission Member Fellows agreed to be on the Community Outreach Subcommittee and the Grants and Funding Subcommittee. Commission Member Sanders advised that in order to get grant money there has to be 3 (three) years worth of art programming, so this will start the clock.  Motion to include headshots with member bios on the website was made by Commission Member Abuaisheh, Seconded by Commission Member Walden. Voting Yea: Commission Member Fellows, Commission Member Walden, Commission Member Sanders, Commission Member Abuaisheh Motion to approve that the Lawrenceville Rocks participate in the School of Rock event on July 30, 2021 was made by Commission Member Fellows, Seconded by Commission Member Sanders. Voting Yea: Commission Member Fellows, Commission Member Walden, Commission Member Sanders, Commission Member Abuaisheh 5. Budgeting Update Melissa Hardegree advised the group that the 2021/2022 budget for the Lawrenceville Arts Commission has been approved in the amount of $250,000. This budget will provide funding for projects that include the Roundabout, murals, Art Walk, etc. The Alleyway and Depot District Sign Projects pricing is being discussed due to the overall cost of the project. One sign for the Depot District Project alone is around $150,000. The group was encouraged to continue to move forward with art projects, continue to seek and share new art ideas for the City. Grants and partnerships will be important to be able to complete art projects. Commission Member Walden asked if the approved Arts Commission budget would go to the Depot District and Alleyway projects, however, Melissa did not have an answer to that. Melissa encouraged the group to continue their work not to be held back by concerns over the costs of these two projects, which could take many months to implement. Melissa will ask Jasmine Billings and Finance what the procedure is to request funds from the approved Arts Commission budget. 6. Alleyway Naming Update Melissa Hardegree shared the drawings for the Alleyway Project that have been provided, noting how the lights will be installed. Planning and Zoning were contacted to get an idea on the status of 165 North Perry Street Project and they advised that a permit request has been submitted. The Arts Commission was advised that they will no longer need to wait on that project and are able to move forward. Furniture options were discussed, however, there may not be enough room for furniture right now. Melissa advised that the City has had to display "No Smoking" signs during events to keep people from smoking in the alley. When art is installed, there will be people mulling around. Seating can be discussed at a later date. During a previous discussion, it was suggested that there may be doorways opening up into the alleyway for small businesses that may be in the lower level of the 165 North Perry building. It is believed that one company will be taking the entire lower level so there may not be any doorways into the alleyway. No construction costs are available at this time, but the City has hired a new Engineer, who will also be the Project Manager for the Depot District and Alleyway Projects.  Melissa also provided the background on how Honest Alley got their name. She indicated that farmers would come and buy and sell their goods and they would do it at an honest and fair price, they traded in good faith. Commission Member Abuaisheh suggested that when naming the alleyway it should be taking into consideration that there are other alleys in the city. 7. Depot District Sign Update Melissa Hardegree provided an update on the Depot District Sign Project. There were some suggestions made on the design submitted to Council. Council suggested that they drop "City of" off of the top of the sign, keep Lawrenceville and incorporate the City Seal in a different area, possibly the middle of Depot and District. Council asked that the Arts Commission vote to move forward with these recommendations. Then, this project will be shared with the Depot District businesses, presented at a City Council Work Session, and then shared to the public. Motion to recommend that this project move forward with the changes presented was made by Commission Member Walden, Seconded by Commission Member Abuaisheh. Voting Yea: Commission Member Fellows, Commission Member Walden, Commission Member Sanders, Commission Member Abuaisheh 8. Roundabouts Discussion Melissa Hardegree presented an update to the Roundabout Project. A document was sent to the members regarding an open call for artwork. Commission Member Sanders indicated that the budget for this project would need to be determined prior to putting out this call, since artists would need to know what type of budget they are working with. Additional funding may be needed for this project and it was suggested that a partnership may be a good route. Melissa shared that at the ribbon cutting for the College Corridor she was able to talk to the Public Relations Manager at Georgia Gwinnett College who inquired what the City was going to do with the roundabouts. Melissa advised that we were planning to put art there. GGC has a new Art Department Head. Melissa suggests it may be worth exploring if the college is willing to partner with the City on seeking funding and have the students work on the art. The School of Arts is also opening soon and may be another potential partnership to explore. Foundations like community partnerships/involvement. Parameters would have to be set on what would be acceptable. Students do have to make projects throughout the year and this could be a good resource and potentially save money. This may be a huge opportunity to bring several the colleges into this, potentially prior to putting out a call for art. Commission Member Chitwood may be a good contact with GGC. Motion to table this agenda item until next meeting was made by Commission Member Fellows, Seconded by Commission Member Abuaisheh. Voting Yea: Commission Member Fellows, Commission Member Walden, Commission Member  Sanders, Commission Member Abuaisheh 9. Art Walk for Vacant/Occupied Spaces Melissa Hardegree provided an update. Currently, there are 3 (three) vacant store fronts in the downtown area, and the purpose of the Art Walk is to place art in occupied or vacant spaces so people can see them. Should the Arts Commission pick out the artwork for the windows or ask for artist submissions? Or should the Arts Commission pick out the artwork the first time, then ask for artists to send their submissions? The suggestion was for the Arts Commission to pick out the art for the first go-round, provide a sign that contains an e-mail address for artists to send their submissions for possible inclusion in this project. The specific vacant locations was not known, but Melissa will get that information from Jasmine Billings. It was determined that each window should only contain art from one artist. The Commission will curate the first round of art for the spaces and determine how it will be displayed. This item will be assigned to the Community Outreach Committee that will determine how to come up with the artists. Motion to assign the Art Walk to the Community Outreach Subcommittee, determine how to curate the first show and determine who to proceed after that was made by Commission Member Fellows, Seconded by Commission Member Abuaisheh. Voting Yea: Commission Member Fellows, Commission Member Walden, Commission Member Sanders, Commission Member Abuaisheh 10. Downtown Kiosk Artwork Melissa Hardegree advised that the current kiosks need to be replaced, but that the Council and Mayor like the current design of the kiosks, so it was determined that the kiosks will be retrofitted with LED screens. One side will rotate art displays and the other will be messaging on what is going on in the City. Each sign can display different items. Melissa asked the Arts Commission to help curate digital versions of art and photography for these kiosks on an ongoing basis. The Hudgens Center, local schools, etc. will be participating in this and should help to drive visitors to Lawrenceville. The installation is expected to take place over the next 3-4 months. An Open Call can go out at any time and Melissa would like to have artwork available by the time the kiosks are completed. The Open Call will include details on size, orientation, etc. and can also include photography. Releases will need to be signed by the artist and included with the submission. This project will proceed and will be assigned to the Community Outreach Committee. Motion to proceed with curating artwork for the downtown kiosks was made by Commission Member Walden, Seconded by Commission Member Fellows. Voting Yea: Commission Member Fellows, Commission Member Walden, Commission Member Sanders, Commission Member Abuaisheh 11. Website Update  Melissa Hardegree covered this update under the Branding Committee Update. Other Business There was no other business. Citizen Comments Comments will be limited to two (2) minutes per person. Art Commission members will not respond to comments. 2 members of the Lawrenceville Women's Club attended the meeting and the Arts Commission members listened to their comments. Final Adjournment Motion to adjourn was made by Commission Member Walden, Seconded by Commission Member Abuaisheh. Voting Yea: Commission Member Fellows, Commission Member Walden, Commission Member Sanders, Commission Member Abuaisheh The meeting adjourned at 7:22 PM. Minutes Signature ___________________ Aura-Leigh Sanders, Chairman ___________________ Jasmine Billings, Secretary