City of San Leandro Arts, Culture and Library Commission Meeting – August 31, 2026

The Arts, Culture and Library Commission met to receive the FY 2025 Arts & Culture Grants final-report presentation, approve volunteer mosaic designs for MacArthur Boulevard planters, and hear committee reports. Seven commissioners were present, satisfying the quorum of five. Date note: the supplied meeting date is 2026-08-31 14:30:00+00:00, while the agenda and transcript identify the meeting as July 21, 2026; the content below follows the agenda/transcript.

Consent Calendar

• Minutes of the June 16, 2026 meeting were approved unanimously by voice vote.

Public Comments & Testimony

• No public comments were offered.

Presentations

• Grants Committee Report on FY 2025 Arts & Culture Grants Program (Item 6A): Staff and the Grants Committee presented final reports from the FY25 cycle. Grantees submitted their final reports in January 2026. The program received 22 applications and awarded 7 grants—4 individual artists and 3 nonprofit organizations—totaling $46,500.
  • Andrea Guskin – Local Roots ($5,000): Worked with 9 community members over 6 months to create ancestral cyanotype portraits and held a free public cyanotype-making workshop outside the Main Library that engaged 30 people.
  • Elonita Macani O’Malley – Oakland Ilocana ($5,000): Completed the short documentary, screened it at the San Leandro Main Library, and taught a cultural-preservation workshop; approximately 35–40 people attended.
  • Laura Sadillo – Pre-native Visualizations ($5,000): Completed a book of 20 visualizations and led a personal land-acknowledgement workshop during Native American Heritage Month; 9 participants attended, and the work continues in a “Reading for Healing” group.
  • Eric Shea – San Leandro Nightscapes ($4,000): Created 22 impressionistic oil paintings, including five 36x36 pieces, exhibited at the library gallery; about 35 people attended the reception.
  • San Leander Improvement Association – Downtown Garbage Enclosure Mural ($10,000): Completed a permanent mural on a city-owned downtown parking-lot garbage enclosure, with positive feedback.
  • Juniper Corner – Children’s Play Space Mural ($7,500): Completed a permanent mural at 1900 East 14th Street in early November, reported by executive director Eve King; it is highly visible to southbound traffic on East 14th.
  • Bethel Church – Resilient San Leandro Community Mural ($10,000): Completed “Tapestry of Abundance” on the Bancroft Avenue church wall through a community-driven survey and brainstorming process; launched at an August resilience hub event, reported by Arena Kim Eubanks.
  • Staff said all final reports were received, with two extensions: one for mural completion and one tax-related extension for the documentary grantee.
  • Commissioners praised the program as “money well spent,” noted workshops averaged roughly 30–40 attendees and several new murals were visible community assets, and discussed sending a summary to city council members. Chair Miller accepted that as an action item.

Action Items

• Mosaic-Tiling of Three Planters on MacArthur Boulevard by Volunteers (Item 7A): Staff introduced a volunteer proposal from Karen Di Fumolo and Elena to mosaic three city-owned planters on MacArthur Boulevard at no cost to the city. The planters were originally installed with redevelopment funds; the city does not maintain them and adjacent businesses are responsible for maintenance, a responsibility that would remain unchanged. Karen Di Fumolo presented examples of past volunteer mosaics, described designs including flowers/butterflies/bees and an abstract brightly colored planter with glass beads, noted mosaics resist tagging, and welcomed volunteers. The commission unanimously approved the proposed designs, and staff will prepare a hold harmless agreement for the project.

Commission Reports and Announcements

• Grants Committee (Item 8A): FY26 grantees have all been paid, with funded activities due by December 31, 2026, and final reports due in mid-January 2027. Staff will send reminder documentation. The FY27 grant round has $30,000 and is expected to come before the commission in the fall; an open subcommittee seat was announced. A commissioner asked about expanding grant funding through matching grants or fundraising; staff said donations to the city are possible but agreed to consult the city attorney on solicitation policies. Staff also said a “1% for the arts” development-grant question would be reported at the September meeting.
• Library Bike Tour Committee (Item 8B): The committee reported a tentative date of July 10, 2027, for a community bike ride connecting the three library branches. Bike East Bay expressed interest in promotion, staffing, and possibly a bike-safety workshop; Cycles of Change said it wanted to collaborate; one of two contacted bike shops offered to donate for a raffle. Discussion covered group-ride logistics, insurance/liability, and possibly a self-guided model due to city resource constraints. No formal action was taken.
• Poetry Contest Committee (Item 8C): Tentative planning for April 2027, during National Poetry Month, with research underway on Bay Area poets to serve as judges. Library space will be reserved once a date is set.
• Commissioner Comments: A commissioner reported a sold-out opening weekend for a local show; another described a city Parks/Recreation and Library roller-skating pop-up near Evergreen Nursery with roughly 10–15 attendees; a commissioner shared an upcoming San Francisco Public Library event with the Filipino Women’s Network honoring a late library commissioner; a commissioner relayed a question about the paused Latinx writing workshop and possible low/no-cost programming, with agreement to agendize it in September. There is no August meeting. A commissioner also offered free Burning Man tickets to colleagues.

Key Outcomes

• Approved the June 16, 2026 minutes and the three MacArthur Boulevard planter mosaic designs, both unanimously.
• Chair Miller will send councilmembers a grant-program summary packet with images and talking points.
• Staff will consult the city attorney about fundraising/matching-grant options and report on the “1% for the arts” question in September.
• FY27 Arts & Culture Grants cycle is expected to begin in fall 2026.
• Library Bike Tour event is targeted for July 10, 2027; Poetry Contest is targeted for April 2027.
• The transcript records adjournment at 7:40 p.m.