OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD
Record of Proceedings

Arts, Cultural, and Entertainment Committee Meeting - August 13, 2026

City Council — Thursday, August 13, 2026
BodyJohns Creek, Georgia
SessionCity Council
DateThursday, August 13, 2026
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 26:52

Transcript — Verbatim
0:02

Thank you.

0:02

We are recording.

0:06

Calling the meeting to order at 6 30.

0:09

Thank you.

0:09

At this time I'll call roll.

0:11

We have Dan.

0:13

Present.

0:14

Zach.

0:15

Here.

0:16

Azure.

0:17

Here.

0:18

Christy.

0:18

Here.

0:19

Matthew.

0:20

Here.

0:21

Scott.

0:22

Present.

0:23

And Karen.

0:27

Thank you.

0:28

We have a quorum this evening.

0:30

Awesome.

0:31

Moving on to public comment.

0:32

Doesn't appear we have any.

0:39

Moving on to reports and presentations.

0:44

All right.

0:45

Good evening, everyone.

0:46

As with last month, I have this city updates for you all, and I made another handout.

0:51

So if you guys could turn to that in your packets.

0:55

So first off, our arts and culture highlight for this month has to be the success of America 250.

1:02

As you know, it took place on July 3rd and featured lots of live performances, activities, and a really beautiful fireworks display.

1:10

We'll get more into this during our discussion items and talk about what went well and what your impression of the event was.

1:17

But overall, it was really great to see so many people having fun and sharing community together.

1:23

Next, I'll note all of the great upcoming events slated for the next few months, including several more outdoor concerts, Papapalooza, and the city's first ever Arts on the Boardwalk Festival, which will be right here in September.

1:38

So be sure to keep spreading the word about these so we can get high turnouts.

1:43

Besides that, we have sponsorship and volunteer opportunities available online.

1:49

Next, I'd like to mention that City Council moved forward with renaming the Newtown Amphitheater.

1:56

So with all the suggestions that you gave, um council agreed on renaming it Founders Amphitheater.

2:02

Um so yeah, you guys should feel really good about that.

2:06

Nice.

2:07

Um there's about a 60-day waiting period for for the new signage to go up.

2:11

So definitely expect that sometime in September or later.

2:16

But yeah.

2:17

Um finally I'll remind you all of the upcoming board appreciation dinner, which I think you all have a flyer for.

2:24

Um that will be here at City Hall on Tuesday, September 22nd.

2:30

So you guys um should I encourage everyone to RSVP if you're interested, and we look forward to seeing you all there.

2:41

Is that event for boards like us?

2:43

Yeah, it's okay.

2:44

It's for all of the boards that the city has.

2:46

So you guys are one of them.

2:48

We have a few others.

2:49

Um it's just a dinner to show that we appreciate you all and all the service that you do for the city.

2:55

Thank you.

2:56

So anyone's welcome to to come after you RSVP.

3:01

Uh that's all I have for city updates.

3:06

Great.

3:07

Moving on to old business, which I don't think we had any.

3:11

So uh new business, approval of the meeting minutes from June 11th, 2026.

3:17

Any motions to approve.

3:25

I think I can just motion.

3:27

I make a motion to approve the meeting minutes.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Arts And Culture█████████████████████████████████████████████81%
Procedural█████9%
Environmental Protection████8%
Community Engagement█2%
Summary of Proceedings

Arts, Cultural, and Entertainment Committee Meeting - August 13, 2026

The Johns Creek Arts, Cultural, and Entertainment (ACE) Committee met on August 13, 2026, at 6:30 PM at 11360 Lakefield Drive. The meeting included a city update, approval of minutes, a recap of the America 250 event, and a detailed discussion on the draft Public Art Master Plan. The committee provided feedback on the plan and identified community partners for further input.

Consent Calendar

  • Approval of Minutes (June 11, 2026): The committee unanimously approved the minutes from the June 11, 2026 meeting via a motion by Matthew Wroten, seconded by Azure Duan.

Public Comments & Testimony

  • No public comments were made.

Reports & Presentations

  • City Update (Amanda Bock):
    • Highlighted the success of the America 250 event on July 3, 2026, with live performances and fireworks.
    • Announced upcoming events: Patriot Day Commemoration (Sept 11), Summer Concerts (Sept 12, Oct 3), Pup-a-Palooza (Sept 19), Arts on the Boardwalk (Sept 26), and Adaptive Movie Night (Oct 9).
    • Reported that City Council renamed the Newtown Amphitheater to "Founders Amphitheater" based on the committee's prior recommendation; new signage expected in about 60 days (late September 2026).
    • Reminded members of the Board Appreciation Dinner on September 22, 2026 at City Hall.

Discussion Items

  • America 250 Recap:

    • Staff observations: Attendance of approximately 15,000 people; popular activities included face painting, photo booths, and food trucks; high on-site demand for the Parade of Stars youth activity.
    • Attendee sentiment (from social media): Overwhelmingly positive, with praise for fireworks, the new Boardwalk location, and live entertainment.
    • Areas for improvement: Food truck logistics and options, traffic congestion when exiting parking lots, and wind stability issues with the Mount Rushmore photo booth.
    • Committee feedback: Members expressed high satisfaction. Suggestions included adding 2–3 more food trucks, increasing the number of shields made (only 50 were available, turning away children), and better utilizing the parking lot for fireworks viewing (e.g., sectioning off part for guests).

  • Public Art Master Plan Discussion:

    • Staff presented the draft 2026 Public Art Master Plan, a framework to establish a long-term vision for public art, moving beyond project-by-project approaches.
    • Committee initial reactions: Positive, described the document as "awesome" and "comprehensive."
    • Key discussion points:
      1. Community partners for input: Members suggested reaching out to the Chamber of Commerce (business development perspective) and Keep North Fulton Beautiful (environmental perspective).
      2. Missing concepts: Member Braynard raised "contextual compatibility" – ensuring new public art does not alter the meaning or dynamic of existing art on public property. Staff noted that on private property, the city does not regulate art choices.
      3. Material preferences: Braynard suggested promoting timeless materials (stone, metal, glass) and discouraging plastic, acrylic, resin, fiberglass, or untreated wood. Staff agreed to workshop wording to allow color use (e.g., resin) while encouraging durable materials.
      4. Future of public art (3–5 years): Members envisioned timeless, objective beauty; interactive art for children (e.g., hands-on at Cauley Creek); unity art promoting inclusivity; cohesion and avoidance of clutter; using earth and landscaping as art; spreading installations across the city to avoid density in one area. Member Green expressed support for more JC Paws dog statues.
    • Clarifications: The 1% for Art program has not been formally used yet, but developers like Menley have integrated art into their projects voluntarily. Direct commissioning process includes ACE chair on selection committee but not full committee review.

Key Outcomes

  • America 250 Event: No formal action; committee feedback documented for future events.
  • Public Art Master Plan: Staff will incorporate committee feedback, reach out to identified community partners (Chamber of Commerce, Keep North Fulton Beautiful), and continue refining the draft. The plan will be brought back to the committee for further input.
  • No other business was discussed, and the meeting adjourned at 6:56 PM.

Meeting Transcript

Thank you. We are recording. Calling the meeting to order at 6 30. Thank you. At this time I'll call roll. We have Dan. Present. Zach. Here. Azure. Here. Christy. Here. Matthew. Here. Scott. Present. And Karen. Thank you. We have a quorum this evening. Awesome. Moving on to public comment. Doesn't appear we have any. Moving on to reports and presentations. All right. Good evening, everyone. As with last month, I have this city updates for you all, and I made another handout. So if you guys could turn to that in your packets. So first off, our arts and culture highlight for this month has to be the success of America 250. As you know, it took place on July 3rd and featured lots of live performances, activities, and a really beautiful fireworks display. We'll get more into this during our discussion items and talk about what went well and what your impression of the event was. But overall, it was really great to see so many people having fun and sharing community together. Next, I'll note all of the great upcoming events slated for the next few months, including several more outdoor concerts, Papapalooza, and the city's first ever Arts on the Boardwalk Festival, which will be right here in September. So be sure to keep spreading the word about these so we can get high turnouts. Besides that, we have sponsorship and volunteer opportunities available online. Next, I'd like to mention that City Council moved forward with renaming the Newtown Amphitheater. So with all the suggestions that you gave, um council agreed on renaming it Founders Amphitheater. Um so yeah, you guys should feel really good about that. Nice. Um there's about a 60-day waiting period for for the new signage to go up. So definitely expect that sometime in September or later. But yeah. Um finally I'll remind you all of the upcoming board appreciation dinner, which I think you all have a flyer for. Um that will be here at City Hall on Tuesday, September 22nd. So you guys um should I encourage everyone to RSVP if you're interested, and we look forward to seeing you all there. Is that event for boards like us? Yeah, it's okay. It's for all of the boards that the city has. So you guys are one of them. We have a few others.

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