Sacramento Arts Commission Meeting: October 9, 2017 with B Street Theatre Presentation
STREAMING COPY IN PREPARATION — RECORDING AVAILABLE FROM THE ORIGINAL SOURCE
Sacramento Metropolitan Arts Commission Meeting – October 9, 2017
The meeting was called to order at approximately 2:00 p.m. with a quorum present. A special presentation by Buck Busfield, Producing Artistic Director & CEO of B Street Theatre, kicked off the meeting, followed by approvals, discussion items, committee reports, and commissioner comments. The meeting adjourned in memory of artist Lawrence Argent.
Consent Calendar
- Approved the Sacramento Metropolitan Arts Commission Special Meeting Minutes of September 11, 2017 and September 18, 2017 by a unanimous voice vote (motion by Commissioner Marion, second by Commissioner Blumenstock).
Discussion Items
- Art Concepts for Alkali Flats Utility Box Wrap Art Project: Dianne Cripe, APP Administrator, presented artwork concepts for 20 utility boxes in the Alkali Flats and Mansion Flats neighborhoods. The artworks were created by approved artists from the registry and were reviewed by a selection panel representing the neighborhood association. The commission unanimously approved the art concepts (motion by Commissioner Mertz, second by Commissioner Blumenstock).
- Artwork in Community Center Theater and Convention Center: Staff provided an update on the impending renovation/expansion of the convention center and community center theater. Some artworks on the plaza and inside the buildings will be relocated or stored during construction; a request for proposals for art movers is underway. A separate $2.6 million budget for new art in the renovated spaces is being developed. Commissioners noted the importance of coordination with the design team.
- Update on Cultural Plan: Jonathon Glus reported that a communications plan will be ready in a few weeks, a Facebook page launched, and a microsite by next Monday. The next cultural planning group meetings are November 6–9, with neighborhood-based meetings scheduled for the week of December 4–9. Commissioner Winlock urged that the cultural diversity and equity statement be reflected in outreach efforts.
- Update on Strategic Division/SMAC Assessment: Glus stated that a date with Third Plateau is being arranged via doodle poll for a retreat in late October or mid-November.
- Committee Reports:
- Outreach and Advocacy Committee: No new report (Blumenstock deferred to organizational assessment given earlier).
- Grants and Education Committee: No report (Marion will have something after next meeting).
- Art in Public Places Committee: No meeting held due to lack of quorum; items shifted to full commission.
- Friends of the Arts Commission: Winlock noted Friends is supporting the 40th anniversary and should be involved in the strategic retreat. Blumenstock suggested following up with former SMAC applicants who were not selected to join Friends.
- 40th Year Anniversary Ad Hoc Committee: The celebration will be held on October 23 at sculptor Gerald Wahlberg’s studio, honoring “legends of the arts.” The event is funded by Friends of the Arts Commission; donations are encouraged. A larger public celebration is planned for the coming year. Commissioners urged promotion to elected officials.
- Director’s Report: Glus noted conclusion of the panel for the creative economy grant program (recommendations to city manager in a few weeks); the Royal Chicano Air Force artwork at Golden 1 Center set for installation and celebration on March 1; and staff updates (Margaret Buckner back, Alan Tejada out for health reasons).
Key Outcomes
- Unanimous approval of consent calendar (two sets of minutes).
- Unanimous approval of art concepts for Alkali Flats Utility Box Wrap Art.
- Received and filed updates on artwork relocation, cultural plan, strategic assessment, and committee reports.
- Commissioner comments included: adjournment in memory of artist Lawrence Argent (creator of the Red Rabbit at the airport), suggestions to include grantee impact in future presentations, and reports of meetings with council members and arts organizations.
- The 40th anniversary event is confirmed for October 23; commissioners are tasked with promoting it.
- Next steps: Cultural plan neighborhood meetings in December; strategic retreat scheduling; follow-up with potential Friends of the Arts board members.
Meeting Transcript
Thank you all for your patience. We're waiting for another one of our commissioners so that we will have a quorum, and she is on her way. She should be here momentarily. So thanks for your patience, though. I'd like to bring this meeting of the Sacramento Metropolitan's Arts Commission to order. It is October 9th, 2017. And let's start us off with a roll call. Oh, yeah, you're yes, everybody doesn't know, your seats are actually marked on their plan. And so your microphone, when you press your mic, it actually knows that it's you, and your name shows up, I think, is on the screen somewhere as you're talking. And so we don't we don't get to bunch together in a nice way. Technology hasn't caught up with ourselves and our interest in at least not here. Michael Marion. Rebecca Garrison. David Sabone. Stephen Winlock. Here. William Ishmael. Do we have a quorum? Yes, we have a quorum. Thank you. And so we have an opportunity to, as the Arts Commission, to show off the arts in Sacramento, especially those who we're able to provide grant funding to, because this is a big part of our process and our support of the arts in Sacramento is to distribute funds that support equitable and strengthen the arts community as a whole. And so what we decided to do is for the past year or so, we were having some of our regional arts groups give us presentations about what they're up to. And we've decided now to reach out to the arts groups that we support and have them give little presentations, special presentations to bring us up to speed, and also as we're getting more engaged in our technology in terms of uh not having our commission meetings in a conference room in Richards Boulevard, not to say that that's not a bad building, but uh it's we're we now have a public forum, and we now also have something that will be live streamed. As I believe right now we are not being live streamed. Is that correct? That's incorrect. We are being live streamed. We are, yes. Hey, cool. So I stand corrected now. We are live streamed, so that means that uh as we go forward, these special presentations are an opportunity for when we get a calendar set up, we'll be able to have those uh groups and the arts groups to be able to share it with their um uh followers online and um be able to maybe generate a larger audience for this commission uh and its engagement in the community. So without further ado, I'd like to offer the floor to Buck Busfield, um our producing artistic director and CEO of B Street Theater to talk to us about what's up with B Street. Thank you, Jason. Commissioners, Jonathan, thanks so much for inviting us. Um we're gonna give a little preview of the Sophia Sacopoulos Center for the Arts, uh, our new home on Capitol Avenue. And before we go through, it's just a brief slide presentation. I just would like to give a little context if I could. Um it's nice to be here at City Hall. City of Sacramento and the B Street Theater and this project in particular are intimately intertwined. Uh we have been in these uh in this room several times as well as across the way there at the former um chambers. And um we have benefited mightily from the city of Sacramento as well as the community of Sacramento. Um, because we are nearing the opening, completion of construction, opening of the SOFIA. I've had a chance to do some reflecting, and I'm getting being asked questions by the press. How did this how did this happen? How do these things happen? Things that we've been just too busy to really think about. And you know, really, in we were founded in 1986 as Theater for Children Inc., we are a children's theater. That's who that's our DNA, that's who we are, what we do. And in those 30 years, we've had five managing directors, uh, six development officers, three marketing directors. We've hired um, we've had four different capital campaign consultants.
openpublica.com