Public Art Advisory Board Meeting - April 15, 2026
Public Art Advisory Board Meeting - April 15, 2026
The Public Art Advisory Board met on April 15, 2026, to discuss several public art initiatives, including traffic signal box wraps, bus shelter art, the Madison Wall mural, and the Birds of Bird Town project. The board also elected new officers and received an update on the Public Art Master Plan.
Consent Calendar
- Approval of January 14 meeting minutes – The board voted to table the review of the minutes due to a missing document, effective until the next meeting.
Discussion Items
- Board Officer Elections – Dave Fredericks was nominated and unanimously elected Chair. Jason Robar was nominated and unanimously elected Vice Chair.
- Public Art Master Plan Update – Staff provided an update on progress, noting an upcoming engagement at St. Ed's (rescheduled from the original date) and a virtual artist roundtable later in the week. The plan is expected to be brought back to the board in May, then forwarded to the Planning Commission and City Council for adoption.
- Traffic Signal Box Designs – Staff presented designs from six artists (Sequoia Bostick, Natalie, Cheese, Debbie Clapper, Mickey Manson, and Tao) for additional boxes. The board expressed overall approval and excitement for the work.
- Bus Shelter Art (RTA) – Designs were presented by Beth (a repeat design due to time constraints) and Joseph Richmond. Ronnie and Kim also presented their joint design for two shelters, featuring water and floral themes. The board praised the concepts and approved moving forward with fabrication and installation planned for summer.
- Madison Wall Mural Selection – The board reviewed top vote-getters from earlier email polling. After discussion favoring both a floral composition (“Bloom”) and a dog-themed design, the board leaned toward “Bloom” based on building owner support and aesthetic appeal. The artist will present a preliminary concept at the next meeting.
- Birds of Bird Town Project – Staff presented proposals for bird sculptures to be installed on city signage. The frontrunner (Tom Skirinski), who received the most votes, featured realistically rendered birds in flight. Concerns were raised about another finalist's abstract, monochrome birds, which were deemed less suitable for the walkable Birdtown neighborhood. The board decided to proceed with Skirinski, contingent on him providing multiple distinct bird species designs.
Key Outcomes
- Tabled the review of January 14 meeting minutes.
- Elected Dave Fredericks as Chair and Jason Robar as Vice Chair.
- Selected “Bloom” as the preferred direction for the Madison Wall mural, with final concept approval scheduled for May 13.
- Selected Tom Skirinski for the Birds of Bird Town project, pending presentation of multiple bird designs at the next meeting.
- Public Art Master Plan timeline: draft to board in May, Planning Commission in June, City Council adoption thereafter.
Meeting Transcript
I'd like to welcome everyone. Thanks for coming, Heller High Water, to the April 15th meeting of Public Art Advisory Board. Would you have a roll call, please? Mr. Fredericks. Mr. Robar. Here. All right. We welcome any opening remarks. Welcome to the public art advisory board meeting. The purpose of the public art advisory board is to collaborate with city officials regarding its public art policies and practices, promote the city's public art initiatives, and educate residents on the benefits of public art on public and private properties. Those who offer public comment are asked to come to the podium and sign in on the sheet provided. This serves as an oath or affirmation that you will tell the truth before the board. Before offering your comments, we ask that you keep state your name and address for the record while speaking. Please stay close to the microphone so we can ensure all aspects of the discussion are accurately captured. Thank you. We'll now begin with the regular business of the public art advisory board. All right, thank you. Uh let's go to the approval of the January 14th meeting minutes. Um a chance to go through it earlier. Anyone else have any questions about any of it? I I couldn't find them, frankly. Did we get them in an em a recent email? I um do not have the meetings from the last the minutes from the last meeting. Uh did you get them via email? They're in the deck. You must have. Yeah. You're in the deck today though, right? Uh I've never had an issue with the minutes in the past. If you would be willing to table it till a later date, we could just get into the business at hands if everybody would be okay with that. Agreed. All right, thanks for the heads up. But I I I was looking at uh at uh my desk and on my phone, and I couldn't for the life of me find them. And I'm not I'm not putting that on you. I assure you that it's probably my fault. Yeah, we'll uh anyone would like to uh review and vote on the the uh ace meter program meeting minutes I read earlier today, then that's what I'm kidding. No, they're next we're probably I didn't know we're throwing left balls wrong. Sharing too many meetings apparently. Left field screwballs that are either sorry, we'll get down we'll this will all come to order in just a moment. We're just a little transcribing. He didn't get to tell you about the shopping cart. It's been a whole thing. It was performance art. Exciting point two seconds. All righty, so we'll uh make a motion to table. Can I have a second? I second the motion. All right.
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