Alright, um I call the arts culture and library commission meeting of September 16th, 2025 to order.

Alright, a roll call.

Please take roll call.

So I will take the roll.

Oops.

Chair Scotland is absent.

Vice Chair Miller.

Present.

Commissioner Saveno.

Absent, correct?

Commissioner Alvarez.

Present.

Commissioner Cassidy is absent.

Commissioner Gilrey?

Present.

Commissioner Risedale.

Right, absent.

Commissioner Smith.

Present.

And Commissioner Velasquez.

Present.

All right.

So we have uh five, so we have quorum, and we're uh clear to start.

Okay.

So section two, announcements.

There are no announcements.

So moving on to item three, consent calendar.

Which basically is just um the minutes.

Okay.

So uh item three consent calendar.

Can I get a motion to approve the minutes of July 15th, 2025?

I motion to approve that.

So motion was made by Commissioner Smith.

I second and seconded by Commissioner Velasquez.

Okay.

Any discussion?

There's no discussion.

Um, all those in favor?

Aye.

Aye.

Any opposed?

No, but I recuse.

I wasn't here.

All right.

Then motion carried.

So uh moving on to item four library services staff reports and announcements.

Um at this time, do any members of the public wish to comment on it?

Can they comment yet if you haven't?

You will provide the I'll provide, and there's no public, so we'll it'll probably be pretty quick.

But you're asking just in case.

So uh so just a couple three, four things.

Um, so if you've been in the library uh recently, you'll see we've got study pods that have been put in.

Uh we've got four four-person pods and two one-person pods.

Uh one of the one-person pods is uh when it was delivered, they delivered the the back of it that was transposed, uh, they delivered the wrong angle.

So it's we're we're waiting to get that replaced.

Um I just got work today uh that the park came in, so we're just scheduling that.

Um but so far those have been a wild success.

People love them.

Uh they're in use all day long, and I can only see more upside of people using them more and more and more.

So it's one it's something that in our strategic plan that people really wanted to see is some type of quick, easy access to a room to do a Zoom meeting or uh an online class, or even just take a phone call, or just have some really truly perceived uh privacy space, and people are taking to it really well.

So we're happy to happy to have provided that.

Um the next thing is you are all invited to the Mulford Library groundbreaking ceremony this Friday at 4 p.m.

If you're available, we'd love to see you there.

It's at the Mulford Marina Library site at 1369 Aurora Drive.

Um so if you can make it, we'd love to see you.

Um it'll be quick, it'll be like a quick half hour.

Um not mandatory by any stretch if you can't make it.

Um it's just gonna be uh me saying a few words, the mayor saying a few words, probably um uh council member Bolt saying a few words because it's his district, maybe one or two others, and then we're gonna you know put on our ceremonial uh hard hats and shovels and turn some dirt and take a photo and be done.

Um but it'll it'll really signify a long awaited project that has been for those of you who've been in the city a long time.

Uh you'll you know that that's been 20 or more, maybe even closer to 30 years now that that has been talked about.

Uh redoing that library.

So it's big big milestone to make it to this.

So uh and then you also, if you've been in the library recently, you've probably seen we have a giant Mars exhibit.

And that's the planet.

What's that?

As in planet, yes.

Yeah, um, so take a peek in the like library proper in the big atrium.

Um you'll, in fact, one of the things you'll see is uh uh um uh what do you call it?

It's the right word I'm looking for, a not experimental, but a prototype prototype uh new space suit that there's only two of in the world.

We have one of the two, and the second one is with the designer at MIT.

So we were lucky enough to get this as part of the exhibit, and what's cool about it is it's not like a big bulky space suit that you typically think of because if you're colonizing a planet, you need to be able to move around and be nimble, and you all you also probably aren't having all six foot two or you know uh you know male uh astronauts that are former Air Force pilots.

You need people like botanists and you need, you know, geologists, you need you need other scholars and scientists that aren't gonna fit that military physique.

So there it's a smaller suit um that you know, really anybody could fit into, and it's something that's really like it just looks like you'd be able to move around in it.

Um so it's it's kind of a really unique thing that we were able to get that, and the rest of the exhibit is is phenomenal.

So that's the first exhibit of the year that goes until basically Thanksgiving, and then in January through the 28th of uh February, we have Am I an American or not?

It's a Fred Koramatsu exhibit.

Um, so that's a really especially considering the local tie.

That's a really great exhibit to get here.

Um, so we're looking forward to that one, and then we're gonna do uh, which we've been doing the past few years, but we're gonna make more of a splash about it.

Uh the basically all of March, the art is education month.

Uh we've done that the past few years with uh San Leandro Unified School District, where the kids have their elementary kids have their art displayed here, and we have a whole opening reception name where we usually get like 500 people uh because it's a parents and grandparents, and we make the kids feel really special, and but then it's here throughout the whole month.

Um, and we'll probably do a few uh other things throughout uh for each of these programs or each of these exhibits, we're planning on doing programming that is within the theme.

So this couple months we've got um space and Mars and all kinds of other programming.

Um we're planning some programming now for the I am an American am I an American or not uh program.

We'll have some art programming in March, and then in April through May, we're gonna have a monarchs and milkweed exhibit coming.

So that'll be really fun too.

Um again, another local tie that we've got, as we're on kind of the pathway of migration.

So we've our our team has found some really good exhibits this year to pull in.

We're hoping years, you know, in the future we continue to do exhibits because it's I was I was telling uh uh vice chair Miller before we met that when I first got here four years ago, I saw the atrium.

I was like, oh, this is an underutilized asset.

We can we can do some stuff in here that's gonna bring people into the building that normally might not come into a library, but once we get them here, they then are like, oh, I haven't been to the library in 20 years.

I didn't know you had you know pods that I could use, I didn't know you had um uh a telescope I could check out or uh you know cooking equipment I could check out or whatever it is with the library of things.

So we're hopeful that that's um gonna continue and and move forward is a nice thing to make the library a destination for the community, and then the last update is um an update on the one percent um uh uh fee for art uh for the developer fee.

Um so we got an email from uh the system community development director Avalon Schultz, who is kind of leading that uh project with the fees, um, and she had said that uh regarding that one percent uh for art at the July 21st, 2025 City Council meeting, that yes, the council provided general feedback that they would support proceeding with a public art program for new development.

So that's positive.

Um, we're and she said, we uh meaning that department uh community development uh is still preparing the work plan for that item and uh they don't have any concrete milestone to report at this time, but they are working toward it.

So positive news.

And that concludes my report.

All right, thank you.

So now at this time, do you any members of the public wish to comment on agenda item four?

Seeing as there's no members of the public present.

Do any commissioners have questions or comments?

Yes.

Uh question about it.

Um for the one percent that has been approved since July.

Do you think you have a timeline of when our next update would be?

They I we didn't hear that.

No, okay.

I think they're the so this working on the work plan, and basically what that means because it's a it's bigger than that one percent.

It's all the fees that are associated with developers that they're they're looking at.

So it's a really big work plan that they're pulling together.

So that's some of it, is it's more than just the one piece.

Okay, and that's all the developers that are associated with the city, uh Salandro.

Any developer that would come in uh to do a new uh uh new real estate development.

Um, and I think it's of a it's like a it's a certain size.

I is my memory, you like if they meet a criteria of it's a certain like dollar month criteria, so it doesn't hit like what one of us in the room who might want to build a house.

Yeah, something like you know, it's not like oh, we're not gonna just tack on another fee, but it's like a certain dollar amount size that then would trigger it.

Okay, that's that's great though.

Um, and that's only for newcomers, not anybody that meets the criteria that's already here.

That's my understanding.

I don't know.

That's my understanding, though.

Yeah, thank you.

Yeah, um the pods are awesome.

I went in there, first of all, they're beautiful, but also they're just fun to be in.

I went in there with my four-year-old, and it's just like fun to sit in there.

Oh, that's awesome.

Um, so my question is just like are they um are they like sold out or are they like are they like at capacity?

Like what's the they're not at capacity yet?

Um, so we do ask that people uh reserve them ahead, and you can only reserve them ahead though 24 hours or less.

So if you show up and you see ones open, you can just go to the service desk and say, hey, see the red ones open upstairs, can I get it?

And if it's open, we'll say yes.

If it's like, oh well, someone's gonna be in there in 10 minutes, you know, no, but we also have access now the way we built our uh the way we're kind of controlling these, is we can see also what's available because we have two study rooms at manor, um, so we can see if there's something open across town too.

But right now we don't have that um the the that high of a demand.

There's usually one open.

Um but when we get to that point, that will be good in a way, um, because it shows proof of concept, and we do have room for more.

Awesome.

Yeah, thank you.

I'm glad you like them.

Oh, sorry, one more question.

I noticed the library's closed on Sundays now.

Is that indefinitely?

Or is what's the story there?

Uh so when the budget was reduced, uh this last budget cycle, uh, which starts so the new fiscal year started in July.

Um, that was with the budget cuts uh in place.

Um we in order to meet that budget, we had to um reduce our staff size by a little over five FTE.

So that and and that's bigger than it sounds because it was actually 10 part-time positions that made up that five full-time equivalents, so it's a lot of bodies that we relied on to keep open.

Um, so the the date the days that we looked at to close, these were the least impactful days on the community.

Um so we closed Sundays, because it was four hours, and then we closed three more hours on Monday evenings.

Um, and the reason we did that is um the Monday evenings, especially uh the public generally doesn't use us for their own purposes, like they don't use these rooms, they don't reserve them on their own uh on Mondays.

It's usually kind of a like everybody's like it's Monday, I don't need to do something more.

Um, and we also, because of Monday, we didn't do our own um like children's programming or anything.

If we didn't hit the other days or even taken an hour off of all the days, we would have really inhibited people's ability, especially young families, to come with their children for programming after work.

So we purposely real strategically looked at what was the right move.

So if the budget continues, which it looks like it's going to continue and might even get a little worse, these hours will stay.

If we get funding again and can hire people back, then we would look to reopen uh at least some if not all those whatever hours we can with the funding we get.

Okay.

It's a good question.

Thank you.

And then I had a question about the exhibits so it sounds like part of the reason is to get folks who don't normally come to the library into the library.

So how are you promoting or like tracking if if they're like new visitors versus regular library patrons.

So library cards is one.

So if we get more library new library cards that's a it's an easiest measure.

The others are you just don't know it's hit and miss.

I mean we don't even know if they're here and they're residents or they're here because they heard of it you know because it's a Mars exhibit which either way is good.

If we can become a destination for people to come to even outside of the city that's a win because it'd be great.

I would love if people came here from outside and they're like huh sayandro look at this maybe we need to move here that's a that's a big whip.

So we just don't know fully but new cards is probably the best measure.

But door count is definitely one we can compare door count from the year prior to the current year and just it won't tell the whole story but it it could could be a factor.

You're welcome.

Any other questions or comments?

All right this concludes item number four moving on to item number five public comments.

You know at this point we'll take a we'll ask for public comments on items not on the agenda.

Comments are limited to three minutes per speaker seeing that there are no members of the public present and there are no e comp comments this concludes public comments.

Moving on to item number six presentations.

There are no presentations moving on to item number seven action items 7A fiscal year 26 work plan and budget allocation recommendations.

During that discussion the group came up with seven potential priorities and agreed to rank those priorities at this meeting you will see that each of these priorities is listed on its own poster sized post-it note hanging on the walls around the room library staff added an eighth potential priority the annual comedy event due to its ongoing popularity and because the commission has historically made it a priority so now we're going to have a dot ranking exercise to rank these priorities from one highest priority to eight lowest priority and here's how we will conduct the ranking exercise each commissioner has been given eight uniquely colored dots one for each of the eight potential priorities in a moment we will get up and each of us will place our dots on the priorities that we want the commission to pursue in this fiscal year.

Please note that you have the option to place a dot next to each potential priority if you think they're all equally worth pursuing or you can place up to three of your dots on any one priority to indicate a strong support for that particular priority.

After all the dots have been placed the commission secretary will add them up and see the ranking from highest to that's the one that received the largest number of dots to the lowest the one that received the lowest number of dots.

So with that please rank the priorities I don't know if we're doing the timer or anything or oh there they are um I guess we could just take the time we need yeah I don't think it'll take too long so go for it.

Oh, probably in the box just did they need to use the people I the pens were okay perfect.

And then I cross the paper.

What is home movie game?

That's a good question.

Does anybody remember?

Working with the um digitized digital memory station, having people come in and bring uh Stanley Andrew Home movies to digitize them and having like a film festival of them.

Okay.

Now I remember.

Next year.

Yes.

It's October.

Yeah, sorry, next next fall.

I know we've lost some of them.

So that's uh having Stanley Andrews bring in home movies that they've made in digitizing them using the digital memory station upstairs, and then having a real testable screening of like Stanley Andrew history from the perspective of residents.

It feels like forever since our last meeting.

No one has been much.

I know.

Two months is a good time.

I know the holidays are among us.

Very soon.

Um one of my co-workers.

She was like um he's forgetting stuff, like things around.

Yes, you know, people are all over the lazy.

Like it's fall.

Like school's back in session.

A lot of other things have begun because it's September for the new school year.

For a lot of people, yeah.

I said in the holidays.

I mean, you know, closing year for most businesses.

Approaching business taxes are doing September.

I was like, and there's no property tax in November.

Yeah.

I was like, it's a crazy time right now.

Is that everybody?

Yeah, I think so.

Have you used the um the study spaces at the matter one?

Yes, I have but I have two there, right?

Last time I went they didn't.

I mean, since there's only two, they often fill that.

Yeah.

The last time I went there, it wasn't available.

Yeah, I think I I've been there once.

I haven't tried these.

Chronological order.

I know it was like support, support, support.

Six, six, eight and sixes are the highest priority ones, and then we've got four, four, or three, three.

We're just gonna kind of scoop them over here.

That way, the denser ones are at least all together.

Um, so then continue on, vice chair.

We're just missing commissioner.

Oh, okay, yeah, we can wait.

Thank you.

We can we can look at the rankings.

Yes.

This is all based off of our recommendations, that one meeting, right?

Yep.

Is it the last meeting you guys have in July, right?

Yeah, July, yeah, it's the last one.

It's been a while.

Yeah.

No, I can feel yeah.

All right, continue on.

Okay.

So the priorities have been ranked, and now I open up the meeting to commissioner comments on the ranking exercise, including the opportunity to modify your ranking by moving your dots.

Does anyone want to move their dots?

I'll figure it out in ascending order, I guess.

So the grant program improvement has eight.

Comedy event has six, partner with businesses around cultural programming has six, partner with library to help organize programs that the library has six.

Then next uh the four is support art and vacant storefronts.

Support underpass art has four, home movie day has three, and support art at the His variant Triangle has three.

How do we feel about where things netted out?

How many can we pick?

Well, so the next so the next thing we're that allocation of funds.

Yeah, so the next thing that you'll do is um that is exactly right.

It's like what funds do you want to put where?

So if you're comfortable with um the ranking, which it looks like you are, you guys just ranked them, um, we can move on to the next part of the exercise, which is which is just that.

Yeah.

So now that so assuming that we feel good about this ranking, uh our next item 7a is uh our recommendations for allocating $50,000 arts fund budget.

So, yes, I don't think we have to like allocate money based on the number of dots ranked, it's how we think.

How you think, yeah.

So the the dot ranking is in part to be helpful for that.

You know, it could you could go that route of well, looks like we you know are leaning heavy on you know, comedy festival and the grants program and the other two.

You could go let's focus on those four.

You could also say, you know, do you want to do the math and break it out very equally?

I don't personally, I don't know if that would be your best uh way to go because you're gonna get into such limited amounts with the the little ranked ones.

They're they're gonna be useless.

You're not you're not gonna be able to do anything with that.

So I would I would um suggest that you have the discussion uh to start of you know what do you want to focus on of the ones that you ranked, and then let's start there, and then if we come to some kind of agreement there, then we can start throwing numbers around.

Yeah, so seeing as the grant program got the highest number of votes, and that's one that we're fairly familiar with in terms of how much it costs.

I'm trying to remember how much we allocated last year.

I think we had we had aimed for 80,000 but not ended up using the full amount.

I think we ended up somewhere in 60,000.

Right.

So, and I know it's a much smaller pool of money this time around.

So, I thought it was less than that, actually.

But it was two.

I thought that eight of two.

Yeah.

Was it?

If I'm not mistaken, the comedy event ended up being 30 instead of fifteen.

It was like 38, I think when it was all said and done.

Yeah, but that was in part because it was at the left.

Started as one thing and expanded out to be something else.

I think with the control of starting it as a whole, it isn't gonna be as much, but it's gonna be more than what we had been spending, which was about 15 20.

Right, that's all we had.

Yeah.

So I think if with that in mind, you know, whatever you put toward it, I think would be helpful.

And do we have an idea on what the um what the other dollar amounts would be, like the two partnership projects?

Yeah, that's a good point.

Cause like I feel like some of these could be priorities without having to put so much money towards that.

It's actually a really good point.

The partnering with businesses around cultural programming that really is.

I'm not quite sure how you do that.

I think it's more of a outreach.

Outreach cost of the most, yeah, I imagine.

Yeah.

So the I mean like both of the partnership ones feel more like outreach and coordination rather than us.

Yeah, yeah.

You're marking a certain amount of money, so that's good to know.

Are there any other ones that are less about spending money?

I have a question.

Do we know what we spent on uh on actually processing the grant program, like the adamant side of that?

That is, I mean, I would say so.

That actually just came out of the library's budget.

So we didn't use any of the the allocated funds for it.

We so the way I've always worked, and Bill and I work the same way.

So even when we get a grant outside of the library for like a library project, so um Mulford is a good example.

We could bill our time toward that grant, right?

But we're already getting paid, it's our job.

So why take money away from money that could be put towards something for the community?

That's how we've always approached it.

So our time, while we don't want it monopolized, we just understand that's part of our job.

So we don't we don't bill against it.

Okay, yeah.

So it sounds like the only thing that would cost us money is a comedy event.

Yeah, and then you know, our program.

So you are big suckers.

Oh, yeah.

Oh, yeah, we'll funding the actual grants, right?

Yeah, of course.

And then for like some of the lower ranked ones, you know, Hisparian Triangle, that I think was like 16,000.

Again, I don't have all the yeah, but that was like low rankings.

I think.

Yeah, I think every year it was about 15 to 30, depending on how many rounds of art was put there.

Just um side discussion.

Are they ever gonna do anything with that?

Do you think the the triangle itself?

Like the city, yeah.

I don't know, it's a good question.

I I'm hopeful that I mean, I think what they need to do is get done with the MacArthur roundabout first.

This is just me speaking as a staff member who knows enough.

I think if that goes well, that opens the door for other things to for them to think differently about places in the city that have let's call it creative uh uh traffic patterns, and I think Spirit and Triangle is certainly one of those.

Um I know every time I've driven through that area, I'm like saying a prayer that I make it through without getting into an accident because it's such a weird is kind of weird, like you just never know who's coming where it's going.

And um, so I'm hopeful that someday they do, and when they do, that would that would lend itself to a really great like permanent art project.

Depending on what they're doing, depending on what they do, yeah.

Yeah, because uh yeah, um I think it's it's I just think that we've spent a lot of money for very little return.

I haven't gotten I haven't gotten any positive feedback from the community.

Most people, it's like, well, I can't even see it.

Yeah, that piece of that's not their fault of us or them.

It's just that's the environment there.

And like you say, you're so busy, you know, making sure you don't run into the guy in front of you or that he doesn't run into you.

Yeah, that you don't have time to stop and appreciate the audience.

You don't need nobody probably walks up to it.

No, no, it's it's really not so dangerous to get to the triangle.

Yeah, yeah, it's it's not great.

It you know, and Terry, you bring up your point that, like, I at least I'm gonna go with you.

Uh I mean, fill in if I'm wrong, tell me, but it it felt like what we were putting there was humongous, and then you get it there and you're like, oh my god, it's like a dot.

Like I can't even just driving by at 35 40 miles an hour and it's it's gone.

Yeah.

So you don't get to appreciate what even was put there.

No, and we and it's not electrified, so that makes it even worse.

Yeah, because that I understand that what we have there now would look really fabulous, and now you know, uh, oh my gosh, yeah, but we can't.

So I think also like the longer that we put temporary art there.

Well, it was a good intended thing, the longer that gives the city an excuse not to do anything with that space, right?

So we're kind of enabling.

It can't be as ugly as it as it needs to be.

So it can stick out the sort of um, so do we want to just take that one off the table that like I would I would make a I don't know if you need a motion or whatever you need, but I would say take it off the table.

I don't we just don't have the budget for it.

Yeah, okay.

I don't think we have to make it no any, I mean I think we're just gonna get a motion yet, but I think what the motion would be uh toward the when we end this, would be whatever dollar amounts we decide are going toward whatever you decide, those are the things that you focus on.

Those are the those are the recommendations to focus on.

I was thinking the partnering with the businesses, um, some of these spaces are near like the um the underpass or storefronts as well as a Hisparian tribal.

There are some businesses near these areas that might want to invest in something that they identify with or that they want supported and visual in these spaces of you know of emptiness, um, and maybe that'll be something that that they'd want to be representative of their culture, um, if they want to sponsor a uh mural or something of that nature, so we might be able to kill two birds with one stone, if that you know, if we get there.

So good point.

Well, that could be, because that's a very open-ended, you know, partner with local with businesses, like that's a very broad possibility.

So you're right.

Some of these other lesser scored ones might roll up under that and still be achievable.

True.

Yeah, yeah, either culture or art.

Yeah, yeah.

Or an event at the library.

So maybe we can kind of look at this as here are primary our primary, that's bad word, our um, priorities and have them all on there, but just bring up break them down, and then if we do have funding or if we can figure out a way to marry uh a couple of the um objectives we go forward with.

In other words, don't maybe not take it off the table entirely.

But so because who knows what funding will be like next year or the year after that, right?

And that way we could at least be oh, yeah, we used to, you know.

Yeah, I wanted to just like put in a word for the support art and make in storefronts because I know uh Chair Scotland has put a lot of research into that, and I think at the last meeting she said she'd been in conversations with um somebody who coordinates this in San Francisco, and that there is like a playbook on how to do this, and it wouldn't be starting from scratch, but it probably would have to be somebody to coordinate or administer, like so.

I don't know if it's like a consultant fee, we don't really know how much that would be, but I still think it's a really like what you're talking about.

It's like activating these spaces throughout neighborhoods, I think it's a really interesting and creative way of with a clear path, at least in terms of the playbook and everything that we could explore.

Um that said, I'm like, yeah, I don't know how much money to allocate because we don't have that information, but I think it's worth entertaining still as a priority.

Um, and maybe maybe yeah, if we work backwards from like how much do we want to give the comedy event and the grant program and then see what we have left over for the other.

Yeah, maybe maybe a way of looking at that is um of our budget last year, how much of our budget as a percentage was allocated.

So, for example, if we had I think we had 70,000 last year.

So, plus we had some extra that was a holdover or something, um, and if the comedy was 30% of our budget, then three times five is 15.

That's that kind of a thing, because then it's not it's not a judgment run.

Yeah, it's more numbers.

And is the understanding with like comedy event like that's a collaboration?

Because like I feel like the rec department was also co-funding that, or we're not solely responsible.

They funded, yes.

They saw the library funded a chunk out of our budget, the rec department funded uh so we picked up five thousand, they picked up five thousand.

Um the commission originally had five thousand and there was the extra left over when the grants program didn't uh fully materialize that got pulled over, and then we found more in our butt in the library's budget to make it whole.

So it was kind of a well-rounded group.

Um this next year, I don't know if rec will have the money, um, and we certainly have a lot less than what we did because of the budget cuts, um, so the the more the commission gives the better.

Um, but also whatever you give, you give, and we'll be as prudent as we can to make something happen.

Um, with what you know, we may not be able to do a festival this coming year, but we can do an event, yeah.

I see your point.

So just like back of the napkin math, if our budget last year was $70,000 and we contributed 5,000, that's 7% of our budget went towards the comedy event.

Um, originally, but then there was another 27,000 that went toward it.

Right, so that yeah, so I think it was 20 six or five.

I'm getting the grand total at the end of 30, yeah, it was 31.

So that was 44% of our okay, yeah.

But I guess was that necessary, or did we just use the money?

Well, I think it was just yeah, to use the money so it didn't go away.

That was part of it.

Part of it was it was necessary because we had there was drama on putting the whole thing together with there didn't need to be, but um with next year, um, I don't think we're gonna need as much.

Um so I think that level would be a lot, but so if if did you say it was about 30,000?

It was 31,000.

Is it 31?

Yeah, so if if it were like 20,000, we would be great.

We'd be able to do something really nice.

So yeah, and I we'll be able to control it a lot more because the parties that were involved that made a stink have been given the year to know that like that's not gonna fly again.

Yes, so a little less than half our budget, so let's like play with that number, it's let's say comedy would be 20,000.

That leaves us with 30,000 to go elsewhere.

Um grant program, we're really gonna have to.

I mean, yeah, bring that back, but the uh not an upside, but one of the things about that is that we really had.

The submissions weren't nearly up to the quality that I was expecting.

And I know that we were all expecting it's like really, you know, that type of thing, and so I think a focus of how are we supporting this artist that will support the community that will that will give something back to the community and something tangible.

You know, three people showing up to a seminar is not tangible, yeah.

So I think that we can be more precise in what we're looking for in our application, in an application, I should say, and maybe that will help the fact that maybe we can't do more than 20,000 or so this year.

I think there's also the consideration of like in the past, we've done, I think it's five thousand dollars for individual creators and $10,000 for organizations, and honestly, I would I don't know, I don't know if we can make this decision right now, but the quality of applications for organizations has been, I would say subpar compared to the individuals, and so maybe we want to reconsider do we just focus on individual creators, which are a smaller pool of money anyways, and then it's I don't know.

But more based on uh the need and the and the quality and merit of the of the individual um proposal.

Just make say okay, the most you can get is I'm gonna throw a figure out there three thousand dollars.

Let's just say, and then those who would really like that three thousand dollars will apply, and those that say, Well, I can apply over here for like uh, you know, for a much higher amount without as much headache.

Well, okay, you know, bless you.

Yeah.

Um and that might help us in our quest for really bringing art and supporting art in this community.

And support of what Terry is saying, um, one of the things that I in reviewing what was submitted for last year, I didn't see that there was a way to maintain that art for the enjoyment of everyone, and the Porky's Pizza Ball, have you seen it lately?

I'm sorry, the Porky's Pizza Mural.

Um have you seen it lately?

No.

Um, the paint is peeling.

Um it's still in some places, it still looks really nice, but I was hoping that we could have a little bit more of a view towards longevity, and the enjoyment of Sally Androns for a longer period of time.

So I I do agree with you in what you're saying.

Well, they could uh apply for funds to renew a mural.

Yeah, yeah.

Yeah, that could be that's right.

That's a partner with business opportunity, yeah.

Yeah.

That's a good idea.

I think because I assume that the Porky's pizza palace folks commissioned that mural, or because that wasn't from the grant program, I don't believe.

I believe it was from the grant program, but I don't believe the pork, I don't know if you can.

No, wasn't there a mural last year?

I thought that was the controversy.

Was there a couple last year?

Yeah.

Uh one the church one or synagogue one, if I remember right.

There was some some faith-based one.

It is a church, is a church, okay.

And then there was the one the dumpster enclosure that's already completed uh that SLIO did.

Um, so we did fund some.

Yes.

Yep.

Yeah, so I actually pulled up the email, the SLIA is one organization.

Um, we've got one, two, three, four individuals.

Bethel community church.

Is that how you say that?

No, yeah.

And then the other one is Juniper Corner.

Um, I'm not sure who helped that.

Oh, and that's a corner.

I mean, that's a business, the juniper corner.

Okay, so that was like three businesses or organizations, right?

And four individuals, I think.

Okay.

Yeah, it is four thousand, seventy, five hundred, five thousand, ten thousand.

We had more money last year.

I know, and we still have more money.

And you said the applicants still didn't meet the criteria.

The criteria were not met in any cases.

And that's something you guys as a grant committee can talk about, or what the what your threshold you want.

One of the things I just and Terry, I think you were on the arts commission at the time, so you've seen the the arc of all of this, but um for those who weren't, the arts grants used to be much less.

And but we also didn't see a quality level.

What the quality level was not always the greatest, and that the even if the quality was there, the interest wasn't there.

So there wasn't as much application.

Even though it was down last year, it was still up compared to years prior.

Um we had the the one year before that was like really great of of interest.

While it was down from that year, it's still way up from what it was when it was just the arts commission.

Oh, yeah.

So I would caution against going too like low in the dollar threshold because then people just have this like, well, it's not worth my time to apply.

Yeah, and then you don't really get quality and you don't get uh density of applicants to choose from, and then you're picking through, you just you're awarding things where you're like afterward, you kind of regret awarding it, is for my experience.

I fully understand that.

I just don't think we're gonna have that much money to play with.

True.

So it might just be more selective.

Yeah, we may have to which is okay.

Five thousand is the maximum for any or whatever figure we come up with.

That's still a good idea.

And then maybe you end up with eight as opposed to sixteen.

Yeah, that kind of thing.

Yeah.

So if we have 30,000 left to work with, um, out of our entire budget.

I heard somebody throw out 20,000 for the grants program.

Is that a number we're comfortable with?

More, less.

I think it should be higher.

Um, there's I mean, there's things that we talked about very potentially also as far as beyond the grant itself, um, the grants themselves.

Um there's I think we can always start earlier and maybe spend more money on it.

I don't know if it is a money issue or if it's just a timing issue of getting the word out about these grants being available, and then also making them available, making the notices that they're available in all languages or in multiple languages, and then having someone available to do some translation if anyone does submit any applications that are in another language.

I do think that um there should be more diversity in who is applying.

So uh based on that, what's an amount you would suggest?

I would say like at least 30, I think.

Calculating in my head, so that would we're done.

Yeah, so I mean, I I think I kind of and I think we've had talked about this approach before, like rather than like nickel and dimene projects, yeah.

Just like go big or go home.

Otherwise you don't get it.

Otherwise, it's not worth it.

Oh, I understand that too.

Yeah, um so that's like one proposal is split the money, we're not evenly but 20,000 for the comedy event, 30,000 for the grants program, so that includes kind of administrative costs for running it, translations as well as the award money, we could do it that way.

Is there anything else up here though that we think we would want to allocate money towards I'm just I'm in agreement with the idea that I think it's time to move on from funding the Hisbarian triangle art?

Um, I think that was kind of like a holdover from the from prior things that were done, and now we've sort of um moved into a live grants program that is another avenue for supporting projects, and I think we could still advocate with the city to say, hey, like this art is going away.

You guys should come up with a plan to make this a more permanent site of beautification or whatever, and we can ally with them, but we're we're not putting the bill necessarily.

Um so I don't think we're abandoning the triangle, but kind of like you said, moving to a different evolving our involvement with it, right?

Do you mind if I go ahead?

And like I was saying, all of these spaces are connected to businesses that have been there a while.

Like we don't have, I would I would say a high turnover of small businesses.

A lot of our businesses have been surviving, right?

So maybe they'd be interested in like reviving their space, right?

The spaces around them investing in beautifying those areas so that they can continue to attract, you know, clientele and residents, etc.

Um, so we like you said, we won't be abandoning it, but we can just kind of divert it towards the neighbors in the area to see if they're interested in, you know, and supporting some type of art or something in that area for their sake more.

Brian, um, thank you.

I was just gonna say, you know, just looking at these from the end of you know, the sphere that is like the ones that wind up doing a lot of the work, right?

I can see a lot of these, don't really well.

They'd be nice to have funding, don't really require funding.

So the first two over there, I could see where you could put funding towards stuff, but I also see where it's not necessary.

The comedy event and the grants, I do see that's a need.

Um, whether it's um uh Krishner Velasquez's idea or um Alvarez's idea of like working with the city to like you guys need to take a position or working with the the neighbors in that community or or both.

I like that.

So that's not necessarily something you guys would need to fund.

Um, the storefronts thing is uh as you talked about, that's a maybe, but I could also see where I don't know if it needs funding.

Like it depends what level of lift is required.

Yeah, I'm not seeing that as needing funding.

Yeah, it might be just a grassroots effort that a committee of this group can do, um, with you know, a little support from city staff.

It's it that might be might also be a bigger lift than we think.

Yeah, we are but but we don't know, but that could also be for a future year.

Um, in conjunction with that, one of the things the library is doing is we're looking at city-owned spaces that can act as galleries.

So that includes indoor and outdoor spaces.

So it could be adjacent to some of these storefronts, so that's down the road maybe a possibility too that that could dovetail into.

So again, I don't see that you need to spend your money on that just yet.

Um, home movie day, I can see that as a cost neutral program.

I don't think we need any money for that.

It's basically people bringing their home movies in.

There's no cost to us.

Just giving them the space, yeah.

Space and and we can do our you know, turn it into a library program, we'd advertise it, it would be cost neutral.

I don't think this would be a big thing that we would need funding for from you know, we can run that through the library's budget.

Um, the only one on here that would require funding, but I also feel it's a very big lift, is the underpass art.

And that one is I just want to give a few like process pieces to that.

Why it's more expensive than you might even think is because it's an underpass, so it's a highway serious Caltrans.

And it is going to be a permitting nightmare.

It's going to be a funding, it's just gonna suck and suck and suck.

This giant sucking sound of staff resources and time and money, and that one I love the idea because I've seen really cool things done with those, but it takes probably more resources than what this group has, and maybe even what the city has at this point.

Um, I'm not saying abandon it, but it would take probably more than the $50,000 total that you have.

Oh, it would take a lot more than that.

Yeah, yeah.

And we have two underpasses, the one at the beginning of Sal Angel Boulevard, and the one at the end of Washington, or beginning to Washington, yeah, and end of Sal Andrew Boulevard.

Yeah, and it would, it's such a great idea.

It's a great idea.

I love it, but it is it's a it would be really hard to achieve in a year, much less a couple years.

Now, I don't I wouldn't say abandon it.

I love the idea.

I think this would be a good time to, if you know, if you're comfortable with the idea, if you don't form that, but you spend the time throughout the year thinking about and getting the nuts and bolts of like, well, what is it gonna take?

What are the you know timelines like look at communities who that have done it?

Um, you know, Oakland's done a bunch of them.

So, you know, reach out to to them, like who did it and how, and we can get our ducks in a row without having to spend a cent.

And then when it comes around next time, we can say, okay, that is something we want to do, and we know how much it costs or or whatever.

I think it's the the groundwork needs to be done where I wouldn't worry about spending money on it just yet because we're not even close.

Yeah, so those are just my two cents.

So these are underpasses or overpasses.

Well, it's like under the overpass.

Yeah, the so it's like the through the tunnel.

So yeah, oh yeah, yeah, yeah.

I know we should just say over uh tunnel.

Yeah, because yeah, I was trying to remember what question.

When when would we um possibly even remotely know about the one percent?

I don't know, okay.

That's a really good question, but I don't know, probably not for a while.

Yeah, because that's specifically for art, right?

Yes, that would be specifically.

We could definitely come down.

I know, I know, but you know, like yeah, those would fall into that category really well.

Yeah, so going back to the budget, the priorities, do we want to go with the the go big go home, focus on comedy and grant program in terms of money, and then the rest of these can be you know working groups or advocacy um again?

I think we were talking about 20,000 for comedy, 30,000 for grant program.

I mean, it's a start, right?

Just like we had a start with the previous year, and we finished gears.

So I'll be the first to say yes, 30 and 50 and 20.

Would you like to make a move?

Yeah, 50.

Yes, I make a motion.

30 and 20.

So 30 for the grants program and 20 for the 50, right?

Yep, yeah.

Hopefully we get more money somewhere.

Good fundraise.

Yeah, but not um, but it wouldn't it probably would not be um material, yeah.

Yeah, we might be able to pull in 500 bucks or something, and it's it's hard to do in this community.

Yeah, I think well, can you uh can you restate the motion and then we get a second?

Yeah, I motion to budget our fiscal year 26 um money towards our allocating 20 grand towards the comedy event and 30 grand towards the grants.

Thank you, and can I get a second program?

Sure, second um all in favor, aye.

Any opposed?

All right, motion approved, thank you.

Uh or motion carried rather.

Um is there anything else we need to do in terms of priorities or we feel good on that?

Alright, so this concludes item seven.

Moving on to item eight, commission reports and announcements.

Um uh item eight a arts endowment committee.

Can we please have a report from the arts endowment committee?

I don't know if anyone from the arts endowment committee is present.

So I think that's Commissioner Cassidy mainly.

Yeah, if I remember right.

Um, so moving on to item, or I mean, do any commissioners have questions or comments about that committee, even though no one's present?

Okay, moving on to item eight B, the grants committee.

Can we have a report from the grants committee?

Uh, the grants committee hasn't met since the last meeting.

Um, as far as I know, people are working on their projects and everything.

I know I we'd spoken with Bill about getting an update when um works are in progress so that we could have some sort of calendar.

I think last year grantees wanted more engagement or like attendance from commissioner commissioners if they were doing public presentations, so I wouldn't delegates back, get that information, but um, in the absence of that, I don't think we have any other updates, other than maybe rethinking rethinking how to allocate them, split up the money and and everything, yeah.

Um, definitely where where are we on the timeline right now for the we haven't we haven't yet put it out there for grants because we haven't had the budget and we haven't whatever?

Correct.

So we're looking at, I think February was when we kicked it off last year, okay, and like announced things and started advertising.

So it would be good to like start meeting soon, just to especially if we're gonna be changing some aspects, yeah.

Yeah, I think February because January is when um the reports get collected from them.

Yes.

Oh yeah, that's why I did you have a comment.

That's gonna be interesting.

You asked about um events, yes.

Um just so this Saturday.

So one of she's doing a pre to her future event.

Um, oh, um, uh Laura, uh, or Lenita, neither.

She's doing uh an art project outside.

Um, not remembering this one, but that doesn't mean much.

I think it's too much floating around in my brain.

Let me grab it and I'll go over here.

Great, thank you.

Um but yeah, I'll send an email to the grants subcommittee that we should meet and start talking about changes for the next cycle.

Um, so that do commissioners have any other questions or comments?

Yes, is this still grams committee related?

Yes.

Okay, I have a totally separate question.

Um, that's good because we are moving on to commissioner comments.

So um I was gonna say I didn't see it on the agenda, so then I thought I am.

Do commissioners have any questions uh or comments or reports?

Commissioner Alvarez.

So I wanted to put this subject out there, possibly as a future agenda item, or just maybe as a discussion.

So I had emailed Brian with a question about what is the library doing in relation to San Leandre is a sanctuary city.

Um there is obviously major anti-immigrant enforcement right now nationwide, and now it's like cities are being targeted by various federal agencies, um US citizens are being detained wrongfully, um green card holders are being detained, so with the sweeps and all of all of the enforcement that's going on.

Um I'm curious about what resources are available in the library for our community, and then also more specific to that.

Um so there's there's some basic things like the library could just make sure there's no your rights cards that are available to people, um, which are very handy also for even non-immigrant brown skin people to have just be like, hey, I'm I know my rights too.

You don't need to know what my immigration status is to stand in solidarity.

Um then there is also like are there protocols?

Like if ice comes in, do people is there a room where people can go that is non-public, so therefore ICE or whatever other federal agency there is um can't enter and just start harassing people who are members of our community in the library.

So I want to know.

So I can answer the second one for sure.

We don't have that, and we're advised to by the city attorney, um, that if something like whatever law enforcement comes in, be it ICE or um FBI or whatever it is, um we don't interfere, but we also don't cooperate.

Um so we as an example we can't harbor um someone we can't impede law enforcement from doing their job.

So if we can't say hey we've got this safe space that we're not gonna let people into you know the law enforcement into but we also're not like taking the public and hiding them but also in terms of like if they're like hey we need to see the library records of your patrons because we need to see who who's here so we can go to their house and round them up we say absolutely not we're not helping you.

If you want it go for it but it's locked so good luck.

So that's what we've been you know the basically the process we've been given is don't impede but also we don't aid um so that's really all we can do that's what we've been told um and that's what we have to abide by um because that's what our the city council has approved um that's what our city manager is approved um so we can't really go beyond that um you can advocate for that to them but advocating for it for the library we can't really do much um because we aren't independent we follow what they tell us to do so I guess what my initial response to that is just there is a difference between local law enforcement and federal ICE agents or whatever other agents are not actually lawfully doing what they're supposed to be doing.

Right um and then the other the other thing is part of why this comes up is you know I have my world has been open because my kid is in public school now he's in TK so like when you walk into his school what I love is on like their front sign that's lit up and says different things it says everybody's welcome here sanctuary school and we're gonna draw welcome when you first walk in there's red cards um so I'm just wondering if like that kind of welcoming like the fact that the library is openly pro everyone um like to what extent can that be fostered within the library.

Yes and I've I've inquired about the red cards if you're not familiar with the red cards are they're basically just like a pamphlet of like know your rights kind of card.

So they're like what you can say to ICE yeah you can follow your script um so I've inquired about that um but haven't gotten a an answer that is allowing me to go forward with that I don't think there's an opposition but I also think they're just treading lightly to not be in the crosshairs totally as well um they being just the city in general um I mean those are just my two cents um we'll see what we can do but yes we are open to everyone and we do welcome everyone um but we unlike a school we can't go into lockdown as it like because a lot of the schools are just locked down once school starts we aren't so that's there's a little difference there is a difference so that makes it just a different thing to navigate because we're totally open other than staff areas but we can't say oh looks like they're rounding people up and you have darker skin than I do so come on and back.

That would be awkward for us and also you know we'd be making some weird judgments about people as well.

And also we'd be breaking the law so we wouldn't be able to do that.

So that's where we just aren't allowed to impede.

No, I get your point that maybe some of the law enforcement isn't doing it legally, but that's not us to ours to decide.

Right.

So then my follow up.

Sorry, this is obviously my little I've been thinking about this.

Um is there a is the policy public for like what is the protocol public for what?

The protocol is not public for a reason.

Um like it's it's our it's our internal procedure.

Like we don't give out uh as an example, like we don't have our evacuation procedure public before reasons that if an active shooter were to see it and want to plan, they know exactly what to do to to negate the safety.

Um so the internal process and for it is ours as a uh staff, so our staff knows what to do.

Um but we do have a very detailed process that the city attorney uh worked up with us, okay.

And is that like similar or the same as any other city department or whatever, ours is a little different, it's more robust because we're in a different situation than most departments, because we also have the added um burden of having people's records where most city departments have no records of any kind, you're just out at a park, or you're you know, you're in a community development doesn't really have that kind of level of engagement that we do.

It's a closed department, it's not really open to the public other than that permitting, and it's unlikely that someone who's getting a permit is gonna be tracked by a law enforcement agency for uh immigration issue.

Um so ours is a little more robust and directive um than most other departments because of that.

Okay, and then my last question.

Um would a know your rights training be something that can happen in the library.

I don't see why not.

Yeah, I don't see why not.

Yeah, that's a that's a very normalized, it would be no different than in my mind, it would be no different than a like learn how to vote, yeah.

Learn about the constitution, like it's all it's I mean, ultimately it really is constitutional, it's like knowing constitutional rights.

Yeah, so yeah, that would be that would really slot into the governmental role the library does really, really well.

So that's something that could be done.

Yeah, that's all my question.

Okay, thank you for asking.

Yeah, thanks, Laura.

She asked the hard questions.

Okay, but they're good to know, yes.

Are there any other comments or reports from the commission?

I'll be quick.

Um the committees, I don't know who's on the committees and not what committees we have.

You allow that we have that.

I was just gonna say maybe Yolanda has that.

Otherwise, I think what might be wise is because there's been some turnover since this committees were or could we get that information in email?

That's what I was just gonna suggest.

Is an email go out to who is on the committee currently?

My apologies.

So I know that we did it last month, um, and we did it, and I missed it.

Oh, okay.

So we'll only remember it.

It was just part of it so that we can remember who's on the committee, or that you all can remember who's on the committee.

Yes, especially now that we have like I hit a new commissioner, yeah.

Right.

And then for last month that we forgot, and then some of these, you know, projects that we want to fund.

If I want to help with one of the committees, then I would see if there's an available seat, right?

Yep.

Yeah.

Thank you.

Any other comments or a voice?

Well, I'm calling here for it.

Um, it was for Andrea Guskin.

Oh, Andrea Guskin.

Oh, the the program.

Saturday theme, one of the one of the events is this Saturday.

Right.

Okay.

From 12 to 2.

Thank you.

Okay, so um, do I have moving on to item nine adjournment?

Do I have a motion to adjourn the meeting at September 16th, 2025?

Um, just one more comment just to respond.

There's potential for us to start a new committee to, you know, address any of these young projects also.

Yeah, there's so much to address.

Yeah.

Okay, okay.

Thank you.

You can have a committee committee.

Uh do I have a motion to adjourn the meeting of September 16th?

Oh my gosh, one last question.

I'm sorry.

Will we get an email about the Saturday event for Andrea?

Uh from because that's that's what was mentioned, right?

Like we would be invited to support this awardee.

Should be on a library calendar, right?

It should be.

But that's done should and R aren't always the same thing, unfortunately.

So one of our awardees is having like a preliminary event to her project.

Yeah, but we have no idea.

Yeah, she's a little bit about it.

Yeah, which is great.

Okay, yeah, you know, so we'll create a little bit tomorrow.

Okay, yeah, I don't think that I can look for something.

I don't think that um she prepared anything for this event.

So that's they normally would and then we would in turn post that makes sense, yeah.

That's fair.

Well, thank you for sending whatever information there is.

Thank you for sharing today.

Any other comments, questions?

Okay, do I have a motion to adjourn the meeting of September 16th, 2025?

So is there a second?

Second, any discussion?

Hearing none, all in favor?

Uh any opposed?

All right, motion carried the meeting of September 16th, 2025.

Is advanced at 8 p.m.

Thank you all.

Good seeing you.