OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD
Record of Proceedings

Bellevue Arts Commission Meeting - September 8, 2025 (Note: Transcript states September 3, 2025)

City Council — Monday, September 8, 2025
BodyBellevue, Washington
SessionCity Council
DateMonday, September 8, 2025
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 41:38

Transcript — Verbatim
0:05

Thank you.

0:06

It's 4 30 on Wednesday, September 3rd, 2025, and I am calling the Bellevue Arts Commission meeting to order.

0:16

And first item on the agenda, I'm going to ask for a motion to approve um the agenda that is before us for this meeting.

0:26

Do I have a motion to approve the agenda?

0:29

Yeah, motion to approve.

0:31

Do I hear a second?

0:33

I second.

0:34

Moved and seconded.

0:36

All those in favor?

0:37

Aye.

0:38

Motion carries.

0:40

And then I would also like to ask for a motion to approve the July 9th, 2025 special meeting minutes.

0:49

Do I have a motion?

0:51

I motion.

0:53

Motion is on the floor.

0:55

Do I have a second?

0:57

I'll second.

0:58

Moved and seconded.

0:59

All those in favor signify by saying aye.

1:02

Aye.

1:04

Motion carries.

1:06

Oral communications.

1:08

Do we have register?

1:20

We do.

1:21

We have one person signed up for oral communications, Sarah Wagner.

1:30

Please press the button on the microphone in front of you until it's green, and then your three minutes to start.

1:39

No.

1:41

Hi, my name is Sarah Wagner.

1:42

I'm the executive director of Bellevue Symphony, and I just wanted to take these couple of minutes to um raise our profile a little bit, let everyone know what we're doing in the community.

1:52

We are applying for this uh Bellevue City grants grant cycle.

1:55

So very exciting stuff in the works for us.

1:57

Um, like I said, I'm the executive director.

2:00

I'm here with Brian Davenport, who is our conductor.

2:03

Um he actually is uh has quite the history in our area.

2:07

He helped to establish um Federal Way Symphony and was there for many years before establishing uh Bellevue Symphony in 2019.

2:14

And we've been having two concerts a year at the Maidenbauer Theater ever since.

2:18

Uh of course, there was a pause for COVID.

2:20

Now we're sort of back on schedule, and we're hoping to expand that in the coming years.

2:24

Um, I also wanted to announce that we are having our next concert October 25th.

2:29

That's a Saturday, 7 30 at the Maidenbauer uh theater.

2:32

And of course, as many members of the community as can make it are welcome.

2:36

We are um heavily involved in trying to strengthen kind of community ties beyond just symphony.

2:42

So uh one thing that we'll be offering at this coming concert is a uh digital visual arts exhibit that will be accompanying our first piece of the orchestra.

2:50

So these are artists that were at the Bellevue Art Fair this year, who we invited to partake.

2:55

Four artists are going to be featured.

2:57

Um there are 50 plus professional members of the orchestra who will be performing this October.

3:03

Um the thing I think though that makes us unique in our area is that we really really liaison heavily with uh young artists.

3:10

And so we have six annual competitions a year in which young artists apply.

3:15

Uh it's quite prestigious by now.

3:16

There's about 75 entrants for each of those competitions, and then the winners are actually featured with Bellevue Symphony.

3:22

So to solve kind of this problem of where do young artists go once they have developed their skill set and want to perform with a professional orchestra, that's kind of what we're trying to bridge.

3:30

And this is often actually their very first experience with a full orchestra backing.

3:34

So in this uh coming um concert, we have two featured artists um along with then our major symphony, which will be Brahms Fourth, which will be the second half of the program.

3:45

Uh, just a word on Brian Davenport.

3:48

He um actually studied music extensively in Europe, first at Harvard, then in Europe.

3:53

He spent um two years at the Cologne Opera House and then six years at the um uh state theater and opera house in Darmstadt, where he was the Kappenmeister.

4:02

So basically, he was the head of that opera house.

4:05

He brings all of that back here to the Pacific Northwest, and so his passion is really bringing that musical repertory and the understanding of it, that penetration of the music to this community, and that really is um sort of unique in our in our local area.

4:18

So basically, uh Bellevue Symphony is the city symphony for Bellevue.

4:23

We have this long history of classical music expertise, but then trying to pass that on sort of to the young generation and open an avenue where they can perform with in a professional setting while simultaneously connecting more with that community and bringing more of the arts into our arena.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Arts And Culture█████████████████████████████████████████████63%
Procedural█████████████18%
Public Engagement████████11%
Grant Funding██████8%
Summary of Proceedings

Bellevue Arts Commission Meeting - September 8, 2025

Note on date discrepancy: The user-provided meeting date is September 8, 2025, but the raw transcript states the meeting was called to order on Wednesday, September 3, 2025, at 4:30 PM. This summary uses the user-provided date per instructions, but the actual meeting likely occurred on September 3, 2025.

The Bellevue Arts Commission met to approve the agenda and prior meeting minutes, hear public comments, welcome a new commissioner, receive a partner presentation from Evergreen City Ballet, assign committee roles, discuss upcoming meeting dates, and receive staff project updates.

Consent Calendar

  • Approval of Agenda: The agenda for the September 8 meeting was approved unanimously by voice vote.
  • Approval of Minutes: The special meeting minutes from July 9, 2025, were approved unanimously by voice vote.

Public Comments & Testimony

  • Sarah Wagner, Executive Director of Bellevue Symphony: Ms. Wagner introduced herself and conductor Brian Davenport. She announced the symphony's upcoming concert on October 25, 2025, at 7:30 PM at the Maidenbauer Theater, featuring a digital visual arts exhibit with four artists from the Bellevue Art Fair. She highlighted the symphony's six annual competitions for young artists, with about 75 entrants per competition, and noted that winners perform with the professional orchestra. The upcoming program includes Brahms' Fourth Symphony. Ms. Wagner stated the symphony is applying for a Bellevue City grant in the current cycle and emphasized the organization's role as the city symphony, bridging classical music expertise with opportunities for young artists.

Discussion Items

  • New Commissioner Welcome: Charles McIntyre was introduced as the newest member of the Arts Commission. He shared his family's long history in Bellevue, his background as a comic book artist, filmmaker, writer, and painter, and his children's involvement in the Bellevue School District music programs. He expressed eagerness to support the arts community.
  • Partner Presentation: Evergreen City Ballet: Brian Wallace, Board President of Evergreen City Ballet (based in Renton, WA), presented on the organization's mission, programming, and use of a Bellevue Arts Commission grant. The grant supports a collaboration with Newport High School Orchestra, involving approximately 150 youth in full performances (e.g., Coppélia, Hansel & Gretel) each spring, including a free show for 450–650 students. Mr. Wallace noted that the organization offers over $10,000 annually in tuition assistance. He discussed challenges: difficulty securing professional-grade performance venues in Bellevue (noting Maidenbauer is small and high schools lack professional tech crews), and a desire for a larger facility (e.g., 700+ seats like Federal Way's new performing arts center). He offered the commission the opportunity to speak at Evergreen City Ballet performances. Commissioners asked about venue needs and barriers to operating in Bellevue.
  • Committee Assignments: Staff proposed three committees for the upcoming year: Grants & Allocations (reviewing project grants in the current cycle), Public Art (reviewing policies and serving on selection panels), and Community Partnerships (outreach, letter writing, e.g., to Boward Arts District Alliance). Two newest commissioners (Charles McIntyre and Sandra) volunteered for the Grants Committee, with Erica as alternate. For Public Art, Erica and another member expressed interest; Joydeep as alternate. For Community Partnerships, Joydeep and Bob volunteered, with Bob as alternate. Staff will finalize assignments with the chair.
  • Next Meeting Date: The next regular meeting was proposed for November 5, 2025, but the chair noted they would be absent. The group confirmed quorum (present: Charles, Sandra, Joydeep, Erica, and others) and agreed to proceed with November 5, with Erica able to chair in person. The October meeting was canceled due to Grants Committee workload.
  • Staff Project Updates:
    • 2026 Project Grants launched; applications due October 10, 2025. Grant awards increased from $1,000–$3,000 to $3,000–$7,000, with a larger pool of funds.
    • Bell-Red Arts District Community Alliance hosted its first night market on August 23, 2025, attracting community members despite 90+°F heat. City staff collected feedback on creative crosswalks, shared grant information in seven languages, and engaged with development services on land use code updates.
    • Artist Matthew Mazzota for the Grand Connection Art Crossing Plan will visit Bellevue in September 2025 to explore the community and conduct meetings.
    • Yonder Sky artwork by Po Shu Wang is installed; interactive components (motion sensor to compose music) are being finalized. An opening event is preliminarily scheduled for October 2025.
    • Annabelowski's artwork installation rescheduled for October 2025 due to shipping delays; staff amended the contract to cover unexpected tariffs from the city's art budget.
    • Art panels along 124th Avenue Northeast (near Safeway) are awaiting weather conditions for installation; opening planned for October 3, 2025, in conjunction with Bell-Red Arts District Community Alliance.
    • Art collection maintenance: Multi-year contract in place; graffiti on raincatchers repaired promptly. Larger restoration for the "route" sculpture in City Hall Plaza (draining reflecting pond) being quoted, aiming for completion before summer 2026 and the World Cup.
    • The ECR Artist Registry transitioned from SurveyMonkey Apply to Microsoft Forms due to limited slots.
    • Mural call for a large mural outside the P.B. School in Bell-Red received over 90 applications from California, Oregon, and Washington; panelists will select a finalist soon.

Key Outcomes

  • Agenda and July 9, 2025 special meeting minutes approved unanimously.
  • Charles McIntyre officially welcomed as a new commissioner.
  • Committee assignments tentatively set: Grants & Allocations (Charles, Sandra, Erica as alternate), Public Art (Erica, another member, Joydeep as alternate), Community Partnerships (Joydeep, Bob, Bob as alternate); finalization by staff and chair.
  • Next regular meeting scheduled for November 5, 2025, with cancellation of October meeting.
  • Staff will provide updates on Yonder Sky opening, Annabelowski installation, and mural selection at the next meeting.

Meeting Transcript

Thank you. It's 4 30 on Wednesday, September 3rd, 2025, and I am calling the Bellevue Arts Commission meeting to order. And first item on the agenda, I'm going to ask for a motion to approve um the agenda that is before us for this meeting. Do I have a motion to approve the agenda? Yeah, motion to approve. Do I hear a second? I second. Moved and seconded. All those in favor? Aye. Motion carries. And then I would also like to ask for a motion to approve the July 9th, 2025 special meeting minutes. Do I have a motion? I motion. Motion is on the floor. Do I have a second? I'll second. Moved and seconded. All those in favor signify by saying aye. Aye. Motion carries. Oral communications. Do we have register? We do. We have one person signed up for oral communications, Sarah Wagner. Please press the button on the microphone in front of you until it's green, and then your three minutes to start. No. Hi, my name is Sarah Wagner. I'm the executive director of Bellevue Symphony, and I just wanted to take these couple of minutes to um raise our profile a little bit, let everyone know what we're doing in the community. We are applying for this uh Bellevue City grants grant cycle. So very exciting stuff in the works for us. Um, like I said, I'm the executive director. I'm here with Brian Davenport, who is our conductor. Um he actually is uh has quite the history in our area. He helped to establish um Federal Way Symphony and was there for many years before establishing uh Bellevue Symphony in 2019. And we've been having two concerts a year at the Maidenbauer Theater ever since. Uh of course, there was a pause for COVID. Now we're sort of back on schedule, and we're hoping to expand that in the coming years. Um, I also wanted to announce that we are having our next concert October 25th. That's a Saturday, 7 30 at the Maidenbauer uh theater. And of course, as many members of the community as can make it are welcome. We are um heavily involved in trying to strengthen kind of community ties beyond just symphony. So uh one thing that we'll be offering at this coming concert is a uh digital visual arts exhibit that will be accompanying our first piece of the orchestra. So these are artists that were at the Bellevue Art Fair this year, who we invited to partake. Four artists are going to be featured. Um there are 50 plus professional members of the orchestra who will be performing this October. Um the thing I think though that makes us unique in our area is that we really really liaison heavily with uh young artists. And so we have six annual competitions a year in which young artists apply. Uh it's quite prestigious by now. There's about 75 entrants for each of those competitions, and then the winners are actually featured with Bellevue Symphony.

SUMMARIZED BY OPENPUBLICA AI
TRANSCRIPT VIA PUBLIC VIDEO
openpublica.com