AGENDA #4i(1)

MEMORANDUM

TO:                  Mayor and Town Council

FROM:            Chapel Hill Public Arts Commission

SUBJECT:      Chapel Hill Public Arts Commission Report and Recommendations on 2005-2006 Annual Public Art Plan

DATE:                        May 23, 2005

BACKGROUND

On March 4, 2002, the Town Council adopted an ordinance establishing a Percent for Art program for Town-funded Capital Improvements Projects. The Percent for Art Program was established to provide art accessible to the public and to users of Town buildings, parks, and other publicly owned facilities and spaces for the improvement of the quality of life in Chapel Hill.  More specifically, the Percent for Art Program is designed to help define the community’s identity and sense of place; promote social interaction and discourse; bring the arts into everyday life; and, memorialize the past while expressing shared values for the future. The ordinance states that the Council shall decide annually which capital improvement budgets shall include one percent or another amount for public art, and on which sites the artworks should be located. The general policies of the program state that the Town Council shall meet at least annually to consider a Public Art Plan recommended by the Chapel Hill Public Arts Commission (CHPAC.)

PUBLIC ARTS COMMISSION’S RECOMMENDATION

FOR THE 2005-2006 PUBLIC ART PLAN

Several of the 2003-04 and 2004-05 Capital Improvements Program (CIP) projects approved by the Town Council as Percent for Art projects during the last fiscal year have not as yet commenced.  The CHPAC respectfully requests that these projects continue to be eligible for Percent for Art funding during FY 2005-06.  These projects include:

▪ Community Center on Estes Drive

▪ Public Library on Library Drive

▪ Sidewalk/Street Improvements

▪ Streetscape

▪ Greenways

▪ Post Office

We have discussed with the Finance Department which CIP projects may be eligible for Percent for Art funding, whether on-site or aggregated into the Percent for Art Fund, a multi-year account for pooled funds established by the Town Council in 2004.  It is the recommendation of the CHPAC that the Town Council again approve the allocation of one-percent of eligible capital improvement projects to the Percent for Art Fund once the CIP is officially adopted. 

This Fund will be used to supplement Percent for Art projects with insufficient funds to commission a professional public artist to create a site specific work of art; acquire an existing work of art; and, maintain and conserve the Town's collection of public artworks.  It is understood that the Percent for Art Fund excludes projects already contributing one-percent of their principal amount for a public art project identified in the Annual Public Art Plan, as well as projects exempt from Percent for Art funds because the source from which the percent is calculated prevents such use.

The CHPAC has reviewed the Town Manager's Preliminary Report of the 2005-2020 Capital Improvements Program (CIP.)  Based on our review of the proposed CIP projects for FY 2005-06, and our interest in identifying Percent for Art projects that could be integrated into Town priorities such as sidewalks, greenways, bike paths, parks, infrastructure, transit, and downtown, we held meetings with the Parks and Recreation Department, the Public Works Department, and the Chair of the Greenways Commission to learn more about the specific projects identified in the FY 2005-06 CIP.  We also explored possible collaborations between these projects and public art. 

The CHPAC and the Parks and Recreation Department discussed the advantages of unifying the funding for all Greenway's projects.  This approach would provide greater options for public art and would offer increased consideration of public art especially during conceptual and preliminary design.

The CHPAC and the Public Works Department discussed the benefits of integrating of public art during conceptual development of Streetscape options along with participation from business owners, Chapel Hill Transit, and other interested parties.  Other public art opportunities discussed included engagement with the Chapel Hill Stormwater Management Program and the Public Building Energy bonds.

It is anticipated that the Public Art Contextual Plan will identify public art opportunities throughout Chapel Hill with attention to ongoing projects and commitments of the Town as approved by the Town Council in master planning documents and capital improvements.  The Plan will also present areas of overlap between public art and the priorities of Town departments.

In addition to previously approved Percent for Art projects, the CHPAC recommends that the following projects also be approved as appropriate for Percent for Art funds:

▪ Small Park Improvements

▪ Bolin Creek Trail, Morgan Creek Trail, and Dry Creek Trail

▪ Pritchard Park Art Garden

▪ Parking Lots 2, 5, and the Wallace Deck

▪ Streetscape

RECOMMENDATIONS

The CHPAC met on May 11, 2005, and unanimously approved and voted to recommend that the Town Council adopt the above Annual Public Art Plan for FY 2005-06.