Bloomington City Council Appointments Committee Meeting – February 17, 2026
Bloomington City Council Appointments Committee Meeting – February 17, 2026
This meeting of the Bloomington City Council Appointments Committee focused on interviewing candidates for the Bloomington Arts Commission and the Commission on the Status of Children and Youth, making appointment recommendations, and discussing board governance issues. The committee also addressed the non-reappointment of a current commissioner and a recent conflict-of-interest incident.
Discussion Items
- Bloomington Arts Commission Interviews – The committee interviewed two candidates: Becca and Austin. Becca is a lifelong Bloomington resident studying arts administration, has experience as a grant reviewer for the NEA and the Indiana Arts Commission, and expressed interest in the public art subcommittee. Austin moved to Bloomington 13–14 years ago, works at Secretly, has received an arts grant, and emphasized representing artists outside the mainstream. Both were asked about their ability to provide stability after the recent departure of the city’s public art director. Both committed to the 5‑hour monthly requirement and expressed willingness to serve.
- Arts Commission Deliberation and Appointments – The committee discussed the strengths of each candidate. Austin was noted for his music and production background and his perspective as a young person; Becca was praised for her grant‑review experience and connections. The committee voted to appoint Austin White to seat C5 and to reappoint Gerard Penovic to seat C4. They also decided to recommend Becca (Rebecca Full) to the mayor for a separate appointment. The committee noted that Holly (the former public art director) had recommended Austin before leaving.
- Commission on the Status of Children and Youth Interviews – Two candidates were interviewed. The first candidate (male) runs the Banneker Community Center, has extensive youth‑work experience, and highlighted the disconnect between the university and the city, as well as duplicate nonprofit efforts. The second candidate (female, last name Alvarez) is a program director at the Boys & Girls Club on Lincoln Street, emphasized providing a voice for families and youth, and discussed the impact of social media and screen time on children’s attention and self‑esteem. Both committed to the third‑Tuesday 5:30 PM meeting time.
- Children and Youth Commission Deliberation – The committee favored the female candidate because the male candidate is a city employee (Parks & Recreation), which could present a conflict of interest. They voted to appoint Alvarez to seat C1 and will communicate to the mayor that the male candidate is a strong candidate for a mayoral appointment. They also noted that another applicant, Matthew Lucas, withdrew his application.
- Governance and Board Issues – The committee discussed a recent incident involving commissioner Matt Austin, who had a conflict of interest (proposal involving his sister) and acted hostile toward staff. The committee decided not to reappoint him. They also discussed restrictions on the Environmental Commission, which was told that only one member could attend a subcommittee meeting and that formal notice was required. Council members expressed concern that boards and commissions are becoming less able to provide independent input.
- Other Applicants – The committee has three remaining applicants for the Commission on the Status of Children and Youth (Sarah Brinkman, Maria Arstead, Rebecca Payne) and will consult with Councilmember Julius before making further recommendations.
Key Outcomes
- Appointed Austin White to the Bloomington Arts Commission (seat C5).
- Reappointed Gerard Penovic to the Bloomington Arts Commission (seat C4).
- Recommended Rebecca Full to the mayor for a separate arts commission appointment.
- Appointed Alvarez (first name not given) to the Commission on the Status of Children and Youth (council seat C1).
- Decided not to reappoint Matt Austin due to lack of follow‑through and a conflict‑of‑interest incident.
- Will communicate to the mayor that the male candidate from Banneker is a strong candidate for a mayoral appointment.
- Will follow up with Councilmember Julius on remaining applicants for the children and youth commission.
Meeting Transcript
You know, gone in and what you know and attended. Uh and uh so that's that's sort of yes, no, I haven't done that. And then a follow-up would be what what would you bring to the commission that's unique that you think it might be lacking or just the arts community in general, you know, what you what you could add. So do you who should we choose? Can you do a coin flip or something? Should go first with Becca? Let's start with Becca and then um we will switch for different answers. Yeah, you start to be fair. Okay. Um no, I have not yet. Um, I've been wanting to sit on uh council meeting or the commission meetings. Um but I um have read some of the meeting notes, uh, the documentation on the council meetings, um, documentation and also the the strategic agenda and the public art uh plan uh for the council. I am a lifelong Bloomingtonian, so I've lived here my entire life. Uh so to answer the second part of the question, um I wanted to sort of get back to the community. So I'm going to school for arts administration now. Um I've also gotten my background in studio art. And so now that I'm sort of getting a little bit older and getting my degree in arts administration, I'm wanting to sort of get back to my community in this way in a meaningful way that matters to me. Um, since I am a lifelong resident of Bloomington uh Bloomington. Um and so to me that means sitting on uh sitting into these meetings um and being on uh the arts commission where I feel like I'll be able to make a difference in my own community. Um and so part of that also was sort of working in projects um that I think uh matter to me and sort of grant making. And so I have sat um so second part of that to piggyback off that. Um I've been a grant reviewer for the NEA and I've been a grant reviewer for the NE and the arts commission as well. So I have some background in sort of grant reviewing. Um, but I'd like again to sort of get back to my own community in a meaningful manner. Um, and also work on public art. Um, so in a way that's a little bit different for that. Um so work on this big one that's actually happening um that I know is being built with the uh convention center that I drive by every day, um actually every evening. So uh to me that would be very meaningful for me to actually have uh involvement in that um in a way that's you know, giving back to my community in the arts in an arts way, um where I'm actually working towards something um bigger than myself, so and what I'm working for. So well, thank you. Austin, I guess I answered a first question. No, I have not been on any um council meetings or anything like that. This is all purely from folks who have been uh directly involved, just kind of reaching out to me and just saying, I think you would be into this. I think you should really go for it. And um, and then so I guess my reason for doing it is kind of more of a it's more like a you see if this is a good fit, really, but I moved here about 13, 14 years ago. I'd like to consider myself now uh uh a lifer, and uh I came here as most people do to go to the school and see what's going on, but um I came for uh music engineering and it was really silly of me because I didn't even apply to it and I didn't know what the process was. I was like, I just want to do music engineering. It's like, did you get accepted? And like, no. I didn't, I'm just gonna go to it, but that didn't happen at all. And so um I ended up interning at a studio and I was there at Russian studio, and through it, I realized that I actually don't like music engineering at all, but I do like music, and so through that passion for music and art, I still was able to carve away through Bloomington to where I work at secretly now. And throughout those years, I've met people that are like-minded who you know, kind of take the path less taken, you know, where it's like, you know, a lot of people have this formal education and things like that, and that's really awesome. But then there's a lot of people who just like art and the city still reaches out to help them, and it's helped me, like I've been a recipient of uh one of the arts grants, and it's been awesome. And so I feel like that would be my niche in the committee if you know if chosen where it's like I'm looking out in the you know, for Bloomington, where it's like there's all kinds of folks around here who might not be a part of the the main establishment, but still need to be looked after in the same way to curate that kind of that that different perspective. So ultimately that would be my goal where it's like to work, you know, obviously with the university to work with any organization that we can, but also just keeping an extra eye out for the kind of for the little guy in that way, which is they're very much as part of Bloomington as Bloomington has made me. Where'd you come from, by the way? Uh Northwest Indiana in Belgian. Okay. Well, I have a question. It is a little bit of a sensitive nature. Um, I'm sorry to spring this on you guys.
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