OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD
Record of Proceedings

Monterey Museums and Cultural Arts Commission Meeting - May 7, 2026

Boards and CommissionsThursday, May 7, 2026
BodyMonterey, California
SessionBoards and Commissions
DateThursday, May 7, 2026
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 1:39:07
Transcript — Verbatim
0:00

How do we give us a hug I call to order the museum.

8:22

May we have the roll call.

8:25

Sure, as um Chair Kimsey.

8:31

And Vice Chair O'Neill.

8:32

Present.

8:34

Commissioner Evans.

8:36

Commissioner Wakowski.

8:37

Here.

8:38

Commissioner Fuller.

8:40

Commissioner Caldee.

8:42

Present.

8:42

And I'll note that Kim Commissioner Kimberly Turgeon noticed that she had a conflict today and is not able to make it.

8:50

So we do have a quorum today.

8:55

You may participate in the meeting remotely via Zoom or webinar you can join on a computer or smartphone at https colon backslash backslash monterey dash org dot zoomgov.com.

9:14

Backslash J backslash one six one six two two two two nine nine you must use an up to date version of zoom or you can join by telephone by dialing eight three three five six eight eight eight six six four.

9:28

It's toll free you can enter the webinar id of 161 6229 nine pound sign okay so we're starting out today with a presentation yeah and i'll I'll start this off just briefly we'll do we'll have more of a discussion here I have um our intern from Middlebury Ariana is here with us as she'll be we'll be talking a little bit about a public art policy and just to give you a background on the public art policy here for um museums we have a museums and cultural arts collections policy which does drive how we as the museums commission accept and and accept and deaccession how we take care of art and it regarding to different spaces like Colton Hall whether that's Presidio and the city art collection but those are items that are typically artwork that the city owns those are objects that the city has added into their collection so the requirement of the public art is trying to create clarity for the public when they're applying for art in the community how do they get how do they apply as a private resident to get art installed at different places in there.

10:51

So this is something that's been on our to-do list for quite some time because there's we see in our side people asking us how do I get a mural on this building how do we get um a sculpture installed on this site and we feel that creating a public art policy um would be ideal for us to see on this and would change um different scope we believe in the future but what this is right now we don't have a fully fleshed policy we've been working on a policy and um Ariana will come and talk about some of the project of how that's what we've done so far but the goal is to have a discussion today start talking about a little bit about this today then come back and present a policy we're gonna bring a policy back to our city attorney as well and bring back um things and just we're in discussions with community development and different areas here in the city then bring it back for recommendation from from museums and cultural arts commission and eventually bring it back to city council for a um approval to be the same way that we have and I will say also the city uh for our our newer commissioners here we do also have a utility box art policy that is separate than the collection the museums of cultural arts collection policy so there's a utility box art uh project and policy and so that is currently would be separate but there's different interpretations of what public art is with that and invite Ariana you're welcome to uh sit at sit here or present up with the front wherever you feel more comfortable good afternoon everybody thank you so much for the opportunity to be able to speak with you on the portion of our hello can you can you guys hear me on this one I can hear you not much hold on let's try this your hello it might need a BB on I can also project my voice if necessary I know people online's still off okay I'm just trying to see can you adjust that?

13:51

Is that up adjust the is that better?

13:55

That's better.

13:56

Okay.

13:56

That might be too high.

13:57

Come on.

13:58

Sorry, this one.

14:03

Great.

14:04

Thank you so much.

14:05

Once again, thank you so much for the opportunity to be able to speak with the commission about the public art policy.

14:14

As Brian had mentioned, our goal in writing this public art policy is to establish a formal governance structure that currently does not exist for the community, for artists and for local businesses and professionals to be able to access and apply for public art.

14:32

And so essentially just a little bit about our process and how we've approached writing this public art policy.

14:41

We've intended and intentionally grounded our public art policy in evidence-based research.

14:49

And so our first step towards beginning to write this policy was by conducting a comparative case study analysis of about uh 10 to 15 different cities who already have a formalized public art policy and a public art process.

15:04

Amongst those include some of the attachments that Brian attached to the meeting agenda for today, and notably we are intentionally trying to follow a more simple policy structure, hoping to begin with a more generalized policy and build that out as time continues based on the demands, and something that will reflect the community.

15:30

The second process that we have also taken to begin writing the policy is by conducting interviews with local arts professionals and leaders within the community.

15:39

And so we've had individual meetings with both the leaders and their employees and uh pertinent people within the organization in order to inform types of art, art placement, proper language, proper terminology, et cetera.

15:55

And fine, our final process was also getting informal public input.

16:10

And we had very simple questions also tailored towards uh gauging the public's perception on public art, definitions of public art, uh creative placemaking, and what that means to them.

16:22

And so together those three stages and those three steps have informed our draft of a public art policy, and we have been working more on language, going back and speaking with those public arts leaders and professionals and continuing to make uh edits and iterations for hopefully a final version to present to council for approval.

16:47

Brian, I didn't know if you wanted to add anything.

16:51

Yeah, so just we wanted to have kind of I mean some of it is just to say we're looking at this, as I mentioned earlier, as a public art policy.

17:01

And so what I mean by that it's not a mural policy because we feel that it has to be things which are it could be landscape art, it could be things that are temporary art.

17:13

This could be two-dimensional art, it could be something where there's sculptures, and the other part that's very important on here is the intersection of how do people apply, as I mentioned earlier, because for example, if you're having a sculpture, you still are gonna need building permits.

17:31

If you have a historic structure here in Monterey, you have we have H1, H2 zoning, we have different historic buildings and districts.

17:40

Those still have to go through Historic Preservation Commission.

17:42

So we want to make a essentially a flowchart for people when they're applying to know where does this application go?

17:49

Does it go to the museums and cultural arts commission?

17:52

Does it then go to historic preservation commission and what order of these things that we have, and also what are the fees for this?

17:59

And so we have not created anything for a master fee schedule, but you know, for right now, if you're applying for a mural that goes through a sign permit through um community development, and so we're looking at it would it then go instead on um you know through museums and cultural arts.

18:17

And we at this point we're not looking specifically identifying the funding structure in the policy.

18:25

That's not what we're looking at right now.

18:27

We although a lot of different research really shows about like percentage of arts.

18:32

We have our TOT, you know, we have different funding structures here in the city of Monterey.

18:36

Um, so we're not exactly looking, we're we're doing the research on that of like what funding structures are available, but we want um to get just get initial feedback and get any questions that commissioners may have regarding this, and we can um if you have anything you'd like to add right now, we can follow through.

18:57

The only thing that I noted in here, I read through this, it didn't seem to address the insurance issue, and I know that's been a big roadblock for us in the past.

19:06

I did say when you're in the right-of-way, but that's something I hope you'll include in that and make it more specific because that is an issue.

19:14

Um the cost of the insurance that people have to put up in order to do that, as I understand.

19:21

Excuse me.

19:22

I would say, you know, we run into that with most of our performers or programs, and that would all be something that would be approved by our risk manager and city attorney.

19:31

And I would probably, in my opinion, we would list that out in the policy.

19:36

This is what I mean by when I when I was talking with Ariana about simplifying it a little bit, because if you look at like our collection policy, it's 25 years old or 30 years old.

19:46

The insurance requirements, if we were to list like static names or insurance doc insurance requirements of that, when those change, the policy would then have to go back for review and and change and readoption, re-get a new resolution.

19:59

So it makes more sense to me to like have those as part of possibly um we talked about requests for quotes, the RFPs, like having examples of what that would be essentially for that.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Arts And Culture█████████████████████████████████████████████69%
Procedural████████13%
Historic Preservation███████10%
Engineering And Infrastructure███4%
Zoning And Land Use1%
Fundraising1%
Public Engagement1%
Parks and Recreation1%
Summary of Proceedings

Monterey Museums and Cultural Arts Commission Meeting - May 7, 2026

The Museums and Cultural Arts Commission met on May 7, 2026, to discuss a new public art policy, vote on artistic wraps for Fisherman's Wharf trash receptacles, and begin planning for the restoration and replication of the city's Monterey Angels collection. The commission also received updates on several city art and historic projects.

Consent Calendar

  • Approval of Minutes (March 5, 2026): The minutes were approved unanimously. Commissioners noted two typos in the same paragraph.

Public Comments & Testimony

  • No public comments were made either in person or via Zoom.

Discussion Items

  • Public Art Policy Presentation: Staff (Brian and intern Ariana) presented the initial research and draft framework for a new public art policy. The policy aims to create a clear, simplified process for artists, businesses, and residents to install art in public spaces—including private art visible to the public. Key points included: defining public vs. private art, addressing insurance and risk, providing a flowchart for applications, and ensuring compliance with historic preservation and neighborhood plans. Commissioners requested simplification to avoid bureaucracy and emphasized the need for a funding component. The policy will return for further review after input from the city attorney and community development.
  • Public Trash Receptacle Art Wraps: Staff proposed wrapping 11–12 city-owned trash cans on Fisherman's Wharf with aluminum panels depicting historic Monterey sardine can labels (owned by the city or licensed from the Monterey County Historical Society). The project is funded by Tidelands Trust funds. Commissioners supported the idea and suggested adding interpretive signage, QR codes linking to walking tours, and potentially seeking co-funding from the Fisherman's Wharf Association. The motion to approve the project passed unanimously.
  • Monterey Angels Fundraising and Restoration: Staff reported that the city owns approximately 100 wood angels (originating from 1956 and 1973) in varying states of disrepair. The originals are too fragile for outdoor display; 12 aluminum composite replicas have been made. The commission discussed options: restoring originals for indoor display, creating more replicas for public streets, and launching an “adopt-an-angel” sponsorship program. Commissioners Caldi and one other volunteered to form an ad hoc committee to research fundraising, licensing, and partnership models. The committee will bring recommendations back to the commission.

Key Outcomes

  • Approved consent calendar (minutes of March 5, 2026).
  • Approved the Fisherman's Wharf trash receptacle art wrap project, with staff to coordinate design, signage, and potential co-funding with the Wharf Association.
  • Appointed an ad hoc committee (Commissioners Caldi and one additional volunteer) to develop a fundraising and restoration plan for the Monterey Angels, including exploring sponsorship, replica production, and events.
  • Staff Reports: Updates were provided on:
    • Pacific Biological Laboratories: accessibility plan approved by Historic Preservation Commission; staff exploring use of available CDBG funds from Western Flyer Foundation.
    • Path of History: new signs installed (Casa Serrano, Pearl District); larger sign replacement project cost estimated at $300,000–$400,000.
    • Utility Box Art: staff re-engaging with engineering to update maps of city-owned boxes for a potential wrapped-art program.
    • Granito Mural (conference center): contractor proposing full tile removal and reinstallation with safer mounting; grant applications pending.
    • Colton Hall Music Series and summer art programming: staff capacity and scheduling to be discussed.
  • Next Meeting: The June 4th meeting is canceled due to a conflict; potential rescheduling to June 11th is pending confirmation of room and staff availability. Commissioners were asked to provide availability.

Meeting Transcript

How do we give us a hug I call to order the museum. May we have the roll call. Sure, as um Chair Kimsey. And Vice Chair O'Neill. Present. Commissioner Evans. Commissioner Wakowski. Here. Commissioner Fuller. Commissioner Caldee. Present. And I'll note that Kim Commissioner Kimberly Turgeon noticed that she had a conflict today and is not able to make it. So we do have a quorum today. You may participate in the meeting remotely via Zoom or webinar you can join on a computer or smartphone at https colon backslash backslash monterey dash org dot zoomgov.com. Backslash J backslash one six one six two two two two nine nine you must use an up to date version of zoom or you can join by telephone by dialing eight three three five six eight eight eight six six four. It's toll free you can enter the webinar id of 161 6229 nine pound sign okay so we're starting out today with a presentation yeah and i'll I'll start this off just briefly we'll do we'll have more of a discussion here I have um our intern from Middlebury Ariana is here with us as she'll be we'll be talking a little bit about a public art policy and just to give you a background on the public art policy here for um museums we have a museums and cultural arts collections policy which does drive how we as the museums commission accept and and accept and deaccession how we take care of art and it regarding to different spaces like Colton Hall whether that's Presidio and the city art collection but those are items that are typically artwork that the city owns those are objects that the city has added into their collection so the requirement of the public art is trying to create clarity for the public when they're applying for art in the community how do they get how do they apply as a private resident to get art installed at different places in there. So this is something that's been on our to-do list for quite some time because there's we see in our side people asking us how do I get a mural on this building how do we get um a sculpture installed on this site and we feel that creating a public art policy um would be ideal for us to see on this and would change um different scope we believe in the future but what this is right now we don't have a fully fleshed policy we've been working on a policy and um Ariana will come and talk about some of the project of how that's what we've done so far but the goal is to have a discussion today start talking about a little bit about this today then come back and present a policy we're gonna bring a policy back to our city attorney as well and bring back um things and just we're in discussions with community development and different areas here in the city then bring it back for recommendation from from museums and cultural arts commission and eventually bring it back to city council for a um approval to be the same way that we have and I will say also the city uh for our our newer commissioners here we do also have a utility box art policy that is separate than the collection the museums of cultural arts collection policy so there's a utility box art uh project and policy and so that is currently would be separate but there's different interpretations of what public art is with that and invite Ariana you're welcome to uh sit at sit here or present up with the front wherever you feel more comfortable good afternoon everybody thank you so much for the opportunity to be able to speak with you on the portion of our hello can you can you guys hear me on this one I can hear you not much hold on let's try this your hello it might need a BB on I can also project my voice if necessary I know people online's still off okay I'm just trying to see can you adjust that? Is that up adjust the is that better? That's better. Okay. That might be too high. Come on. Sorry, this one. Great. Thank you so much. Once again, thank you so much for the opportunity to be able to speak with the commission about the public art policy. As Brian had mentioned, our goal in writing this public art policy is to establish a formal governance structure that currently does not exist for the community, for artists and for local businesses and professionals to be able to access and apply for public art. And so essentially just a little bit about our process and how we've approached writing this public art policy. We've intended and intentionally grounded our public art policy in evidence-based research. And so our first step towards beginning to write this policy was by conducting a comparative case study analysis of about uh 10 to 15 different cities who already have a formalized public art policy and a public art process. Amongst those include some of the attachments that Brian attached to the meeting agenda for today, and notably we are intentionally trying to follow a more simple policy structure, hoping to begin with a more generalized policy and build that out as time continues based on the demands, and something that will reflect the community. The second process that we have also taken to begin writing the policy is by conducting interviews with local arts professionals and leaders within the community. And so we've had individual meetings with both the leaders and their employees and uh pertinent people within the organization in order to inform types of art, art placement, proper language, proper terminology, et cetera. And fine, our final process was also getting informal public input. And we had very simple questions also tailored towards uh gauging the public's perception on public art, definitions of public art, uh creative placemaking, and what that means to them. And so together those three stages and those three steps have informed our draft of a public art policy, and we have been working more on language, going back and speaking with those public arts leaders and professionals and continuing to make uh edits and iterations for hopefully a final version to present to council for approval. Brian, I didn't know if you wanted to add anything. Yeah, so just we wanted to have kind of I mean some of it is just to say we're looking at this, as I mentioned earlier, as a public art policy. And so what I mean by that it's not a mural policy because we feel that it has to be things which are it could be landscape art, it could be things that are temporary art. This could be two-dimensional art, it could be something where there's sculptures, and the other part that's very important on here is the intersection of how do people apply, as I mentioned earlier, because for example, if you're having a sculpture, you still are gonna need building permits. If you have a historic structure here in Monterey, you have we have H1, H2 zoning, we have different historic buildings and districts. Those still have to go through Historic Preservation Commission. So we want to make a essentially a flowchart for people when they're applying to know where does this application go? Does it go to the museums and cultural arts commission? Does it then go to historic preservation commission and what order of these things that we have, and also what are the fees for this? And so we have not created anything for a master fee schedule, but you know, for right now, if you're applying for a mural that goes through a sign permit through um community development, and so we're looking at it would it then go instead on um you know through museums and cultural arts. And we at this point we're not looking specifically identifying the funding structure in the policy. That's not what we're looking at right now. We although a lot of different research really shows about like percentage of arts. We have our TOT, you know, we have different funding structures here in the city of Monterey.

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