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Record of Proceedings

Puyallup Arts & Culture Commission Meeting – August 31, 2026

City Council & Commissions — Monday, August 31, 2026
BodyPuyallup, Washington
SessionCity Council & Commissions
DateMonday, August 31, 2026
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 36:32

Original source
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0:04

Is it 401?

0:08

401.

0:11

We will call the uh August 31st, 2026 Arts and Culture Commission meeting to uh order and our first item of business is Pledge of Allegiance.

0:26

Pledge Allegiance.

0:29

United States of America.

0:34

I'm indivisible with liberty adjustments for all uh will the clerk please uh call roll police commissioner Erickson.

0:51

Uh if you can turn your microphone on, sir.

0:56

One more time.

0:57

Um it should stay red.

0:59

Oh, it should stay here.

1:03

Commissioner Hopkins.

1:05

Present.

1:06

Commissioner Rooney.

1:08

Here Vice Chair Busy.

1:11

Present.

1:12

Chair Pew?

1:13

Present.

1:14

We have a quorum.

1:15

Thank you.

1:16

So uh first item is we will approve the agenda and I'll just go ahead and motion uh on the second motion.

1:25

Second.

1:26

Second.

1:27

Um before you go through with approving the agenda.

1:30

Um if oh I need to change that.

1:32

There was a uh system error.

1:34

Yeah, there is a duplicate item.

1:36

The commission can decide to amend and remove that duplicate item now.

1:40

All right, I'll I'll take care of that.

1:42

So we do have a duplicate approval of minutes for the July twenty-seventh, twenty twenty six.

1:48

So I would like to make sure make a motion to reduce or strike one of those.

1:52

So we just have motion, we have just the 3A and not 3B.

1:57

And so I'd like a second to that.

1:59

Second, perfect.

2:00

Let's vote.

2:01

Everyone in favor, I'll start.

2:03

Yay.

2:05

Uh yay.

2:07

Yay.

2:07

Yay.

2:08

So approved.

2:09

We will strike the uh 3B approval of minutes.

2:12

And next we'll do an approval of the agenda now that we've made that correction, correct?

2:18

All right, perfect.

2:19

I'll go ahead and motion that too.

2:20

So let's approve the agenda.

2:22

Second, please.

2:23

Second.

2:24

A voting.

2:25

I'll start the voting.

2:26

Yay.

2:28

Uh yay.

2:31

Yay.

2:32

Perfect.

2:33

Uh so approved.

2:34

The third item is the approval of minutes for uh July 27th, 2026.

2:41

And it wasn't a test.

2:46

So I want someone else to mo to do the motions, please.

2:49

Move approval.

2:50

Thank you.

2:51

Second, please.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Arts And Culture█████████████████████████████████████████████73%
Procedural██████9%
Parks and Recreation█████8%
Public Engagement████6%
Personnel Matters██4%
Summary of Proceedings

Puyallup Arts & Culture Commission Meeting – August 31, 2026

The Arts & Culture Commission met on Monday, August 31, 2026 at 4:00 PM in the Council Chambers of City Hall. The meeting was called to order with a quorum present. Commissioners approved an amended agenda, approved minutes from July 27, 2026, received public comments, welcomed two new members, and discussed several work plan updates and ongoing projects. The meeting adjourned at 4:36 PM.

Consent Calendar

  • Approval of Agenda: Chair Pugh moved to remove duplicate item 3.b (duplicate approval of July 27, 2026 minutes). The motion passed 5-0. A second motion to approve the amended agenda passed 5-0.
  • Approval of Minutes: Commissioner Hopkins moved, seconded by Commissioner Erickson, to approve the July 27, 2026 minutes. The motion passed 5-0.

Public Comments & Testimony

  • Laurie Larson (Puyallup Main Street Association, Design Committee Chair): Discussed a potential partnership between the Commission and PMSA to create a brochure documenting downtown murals, modeled after the Arts Downtown sculpture brochure. She noted that PMSA lacks the software and design skills to produce the brochure and requested the city’s assistance. She also asked if the Commission has any policies regarding restoration of existing deteriorating murals on private buildings. (Commission did not respond per public comment rules.)

Discussion Items

  • Welcome New Commission Members: Public Affairs Officer Eric Johnson welcomed Commissioners John Hopkins and Alden Erickson. Chair Pugh welcomed them, noting their membership would strengthen the Commission and improve collaboration with community arts organizations. Commissioner Erickson shared he has lived in Puyallup for 20+ years and wants to give back. Commissioner Hopkins said he joined to improve collaboration among arts groups and avoid duplication of effort, noting his involvement with PMSA and Arts Downtown.
  • Work Plan Update: PAO Johnson presented the Commission’s work plan, highlighting five high-level goals: embrace Puyallup as a multicultural community; expand arts to South Hill; promote Puyallup as an arts destination; strengthen relationships with existing organizations; and reimagine the Commission as a convener. He listed completed tactics, including a mural with the school district, a library display case, regular updates from Arts Downtown, new mission/vision statements, expanded signal cabinet program, a guest list for local partners, a Commission position on the Arts Downtown Board, and a new meeting date/time. In-progress items include music nature walks, sculpture at Bradley Lake Park, and library musical story times. Johnson then asked for direction on prioritizing remaining work plan items. The Commission discussed:
    • Priorities: Expanding art installations to parks (e.g., Bradley Lake, riverwalk) with sculptures that double as play equipment or street furnishings. Commissioner Pugh noted downtown is “pretty much full” for sculptures.
    • Gallery Space: Interest in leasing unused space at the South Hill Mall for rotating art displays, especially for signal wrap submissions that don’t get selected.
    • Performing Arts Center: A conceptual discussion about a future performing arts center, prompted by a UW master’s thesis by “Nolan” (a friend of Commissioner Rooney). The Commission expressed interest in having Nolan present his work and possibly conducting a community survey.
  • Library Display Case Update: PAO Johnson reported the new display case was installed successfully and blends seamlessly with existing cases. The next step is finalizing a memorandum of agreement (MOA) between the City and Arts Downtown for management, then scheduling a ribbon-cutting ceremony.
  • 2026 Signal Cabinet Wraps Update: The call to artists document has been updated based on prior feedback. The final step is obtaining cabinet dimensions from Public Works to include in the call. The call was intentionally postponed to coincide with the start of the school year (school starts September 2). Submissions will be reviewed at the next meeting (October 26), with installation planned for spring. Commissioner Hopkins raised interest from the conservation district in wrapping a cabinet near Stewart and 5th with a nature/conservation theme. The Commission discussed keeping the wrap program as a public open call but adding that cabinet to next year’s list and encouraging the conservation district to submit directly.
  • Other: PAO Johnson reported that the Pioneer Park statue “Nature’s Throne,” which had a wing cut off, has been repaired by the artist.

Key Outcomes

  • The Commission directed staff to proceed with several work plan priorities: exploring park art installations (especially combined art/play equipment), investigating a gallery space at South Hill Mall, and scheduling a presentation from Nolan (UW architect) about a potential performing arts center.
  • The library display case physical project is complete; an MOA with Arts Downtown is being drafted, and a ribbon-cutting will be scheduled via Doodle poll.
  • The 2026 signal cabinet wraps call to artists will be released soon after obtaining cabinet dimensions; submissions will be reviewed at the October 26 meeting.
  • Staff will reach out to the conservation district to discuss adding their cabinet to the 2027 wrap list.
  • The next regular meeting is scheduled for October 26, 2026.

Meeting Transcript

Is it 401? 401. We will call the uh August 31st, 2026 Arts and Culture Commission meeting to uh order and our first item of business is Pledge of Allegiance. Pledge Allegiance. United States of America. I'm indivisible with liberty adjustments for all uh will the clerk please uh call roll police commissioner Erickson. Uh if you can turn your microphone on, sir. One more time. Um it should stay red. Oh, it should stay here. Commissioner Hopkins. Present. Commissioner Rooney. Here Vice Chair Busy. Present. Chair Pew? Present. We have a quorum. Thank you. So uh first item is we will approve the agenda and I'll just go ahead and motion uh on the second motion. Second. Second. Um before you go through with approving the agenda. Um if oh I need to change that. There was a uh system error. Yeah, there is a duplicate item. The commission can decide to amend and remove that duplicate item now. All right, I'll I'll take care of that. So we do have a duplicate approval of minutes for the July twenty-seventh, twenty twenty six. So I would like to make sure make a motion to reduce or strike one of those. So we just have motion, we have just the 3A and not 3B. And so I'd like a second to that. Second, perfect. Let's vote. Everyone in favor, I'll start. Yay. Uh yay. Yay. Yay. So approved. We will strike the uh 3B approval of minutes. And next we'll do an approval of the agenda now that we've made that correction, correct? All right, perfect. I'll go ahead and motion that too. So let's approve the agenda. Second, please. Second. A voting. I'll start the voting. Yay.

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