Arts Commission

Meeting Minutes Wednesday, June 24, 2020 7:00 pm Via WebEx Middletown, CT Present David Bauer Cassandra Day Julia Faraci Lee Godburn Joyce Kirkpatrick Crystal Laffan Charlotte McCoid Pamela Steele John Basinger Also Present Kisha Michael, Coordinator Absent Barbara Arafeh Franca Biales Cheryl Hale Ed McKeon, Council Ed Ford, Jr, Council 1) Call to Order 7:06pm 2) Public Session: Kerry Kincy and Rich Hollant announced that they will be opening soon a community art space located at 52 N. Main St. in town called “Free Center.” 3) Minutes a) May 27, 2020 Punctuation and date error edits made to minutes of 5/27. Motion to approve by Lee Godburn, seconded by Joyce Kirkpatrick, approved unanimously. 4) Approval of Agenda - Motion to approve agenda by Joyce Kirkpatrick, seconded by Charlotte McCoid, approved unanimously 5) Remarks from the Chair – spoke about how well the arts are going virtually and commended all for the adjustments. 6) Old Business a) Budget Report – the budget was presented to the Common Council with a decrease to the Kids Arts line and was approved at their budget hearing. b) Program Update – Arts Coordinator briefed the group on the type of inquiries the arts office receives in relation to artists seeking resources and opportunities available in the city like venue space for displaying art, gigs and volunteerism. i) Newsletter – Arts Coordinator finds that CivicSend continues to work well when distributing the arts e- newsletter content. ii) Grants – All grant contracts and awards from January have been processed. Grantees either will have extensions due to Covid19 or if applicable be able to transform to a virtual platform to execute their project. Arts Coordinator would like to revisit with the grants committee and would like to invite a council member to join. Julia Faraci, Charlotte McCoid, Joyce Kirkpatrick and Lee Godburn agreed to be on that committee. Topics are expansion of grant categories, establishing set grant  amounts and to discuss accessibility and equity in the arts. iii) Kids Arts – Virtual Circus budget has been approved and contracts have been processed. First week of virtual enrichment classes begin on Monday July 6, 2020. iv) Summer Events – City of Middletown summer events and activities remain cancelled until further notice. Attached document listing cancelled events. c) Support & Resources for Covid19 – Arts Coordinator made the commission aware of the City’s Small Business Grants and Loans available through the Community Development Block Grant Funds. This is available through the Dept. of Planning, Conservation and Development. 7) Committee Reports a) Executive Committee – To review policy/procedures and conflict of Interest. b) Public Art Committee – No report c) Nominating Committee i) Lee reported on proposed slate for 2020-21 year. Franca Biales – Chair, Pamela Steele – Vice Chair and Cassandra Day – Secretary d) Planning and Projects i) MCAAAA Award Winners – Maya Alicki & Cade Napoletano’s awards were delivered to the school to be given to the awardees at their ceremony. ii) Arts Advocacy - The Mayor will personally deliver the Arts Advocacy Awards to N.Baerman and R.Kamins at their homes. It was discussed that a ceremony will be held once COVID19 regulations are lifted. e) Music Committee – No report f) Poet Laureate Committee – Cheryl Hale submitted a poem and it was read to the group by P. Steele. 8) New Business a) Public input- Input was presented in emails and discussion was held about Christopher Columbus statue – in storage in an undisclosed location. 9) Announcements a) It was announced that a Virtual History of Music through Ages had approx. 75 people 10) Adjournment – Motion to adjourn meeting at 8:32 by Lee Godburn, 2nd by David Bauer passed unanimously. Respectfully submitted, Pamela Steele, Secretary Cc: Town Clerk, Mayor Florsheim