Title
To adopt an amendment to the Master Plan for the City of Richmond, adopted by the City Planning Commission on Nov. 6, 2000, and by the City Council by Ord. No. 2000-371-2001-11, adopted Jan. 8, 2001, as previously amended, to incorporate the Public Art Master Plan, as part of the Master Plan.
Body
O & R Request
DATE: June 25, 2018 EDITION: 1
TO: The Honorable Members of City Council
THROUGH: The Honorable Levar M. Stoney, Mayor
THROUGH: Selena Cuffee Glenn, Chief Administrative Officer
THROUGH: Peter L. Downey, Deputy Chief Administrative Officer for Economic Development and Planning
FROM: Mark A. Olinger, Director, Department of Planning and Development Review
RE: To adopt an amendment to the Master Plan for the City of Richmond, adopted by the City Planning Commission on Nov. 6, 2000, and by the City Council by Ord. No. 2000-371-2001-11, adopted Jan. 8, 2001, as previously amended, to incorporate the Public Art Master Plan, as part of the Master Plan.
ORD. OR RES. No.
PURPOSE: To adopt a Public Art Master Plan for the City of Richmond. The plan includes a 10-year overview of the actions recommended to bring policies and procedures up to national standards and best practices in the field of public art.
REASON: This ordinance would amend the City’s Master Plan to include the recommendations and results of the Public Art Master Plan.
RECOMMENDATION: The Planning Commission passed a resolution to adopt the Public Art Master Plan at its June 4, 2018 meeting.
BACKGROUND:
The City has had a Public Art program since 1991, when the Public Art Commission (PAC) was founded to oversee a Percent for Art Program for eligible capital projects within the City’s budget process. Over that time period, the Public Art Program has grown from a relatively modest program to one where the Percent for Art fund has a current balance of $1 million, managing on behalf of the City of Richmond, 44 artworks valued at approximately $1.46 million.
The intent of the Public Art Master Plan is to guide the City’s and community’s future investments into public art; to create expanded opportunities for investment into place making and public realm improvements; to put into place, and fund, tools to help inventory, assess, and maintained the City’s growing collection, and to be able to do that on a regular basis. As the scope and breadth of the work of the PAC has grown, the PAC wanted to have a Public Art Master Plan that would provide support for policies and procedures necessary to align the Public Art Program more closely with best practices observed throughout the country. Further, the desire of the PAC was to have the recommendations of the Public Art Mast Plan adopted by the Richmond City Council before any additional projects are initiated.
An adopted Public Art Master Plan and available funding will enable Richmond to increase the size, quality and scope of its public art collection, gain national recognition in the arts scene, provide opportunities for local artists, and expand the definition of Public Art to include other media. The success of any Public Art Program relies on the structure and the efficiency of the administrative process to ensure that funding is allocated and that projects are undertaken that are of both aesthetic value and reflect the ideals of the Richmond community.
At its core, the Public Art Master Plan represents the policy framework to revise the operational procedures of the Public Art Program, to create a more sustainable and adaptable Public Art Program, and implement projects that are in alignment with successful programs nationally. The plan will update all policies to reflect current national best practice standards and create a platform for community engagement, artistic excellence and comprehensive integration of public art into City processes.
Operationally, the Public Art Master Plan identifies goals for Richmond's Public Art Program, defines priorities and artistic approaches for the Public Art Program, expands the definition of Public Art to broaden project eligibility, identifies strategic partnerships and possible sources of alternative funding, and provides direction for ongoing program development and management.
The plan also addresses opportunities for ongoing public engagement; supports increased opportunities for public art; and celebrates art as an essential element for a thriving, healthy and inclusive community. The Public Art Master plan will guide the City and community’s future investment into public art and reflects the national best practices and standards related to creative place making, public art and city design. The plan updates all policies to create a platform for community engagement, artistic excellence and comprehensive integration of public art into City processes.
Opportunities and Objectives
• Guiding principles are clearly articulated in the plan’s framework and provide context for the procedural elements of the plan. Principles include comprehensive integration, democratic process, insistence on excellence and authenticity.
• The consultant team developed a series of recommendations that will not only strengthen the administrative oversight of the program but also will recommend project priorities that emerged throughout community engagement and public meetings.
• Specific locations that are identified as project priorities and maps are reflective of the input from the community and not a mandate but a reflection of public input.
• Funding allocations and projects will be determined in an annual work plan that is created with the input of the Mayoral administration, CAO, Public Art Staff and Commission and will be fluid to adapt to a changing cultural landscape and also reflect strategic partnership possibilities and external funding opportunities. The opportunity to expand the public art program in order to create a more sustainable and effective program that is in alignment with national best practices is reliant upon the organizational shift of the commission to embrace their role as an advocacy and approving body. The restructure is necessary to implement a cohesive and functional program and the immediate steps as outlined below as the first priorities.
Immediate Priorities
1. Rewrite and adopt a Percent for Art ordinance that best reflects practices in the public art field.
2. Formalize the Public Art Commission, revise administrative procedures and diversify the commission to reflect a more authentic representation of the Richmond population.
3. Develop an annual Public Artwork Plan for review and recommendation by the Public Art Commission.
4. Adopt additional policies (outlined in Appendix C-G) that will include procedures for temporary art, memorials and clearer administrative guidelines to ensure that funding is allocated as mandated by the Percent for Art ordinance which includes clearly defining project eligibility and having a Percent for Art line item added to the Capital Improvement Project (CIP) Budget with clear instructions for CIP and Budget departments to include the allocation.
5. Revise the artist and artwork selection panel process.
Public Participation
The Public Art Commission as well as City staff guided the Public Art Master Plan. The community input that was gathered through both small group meetings, individual interviews with community stakeholders, focus groups, town halls and an online survey with over 600 unique responses. The full list of participants interviewed is available in Appendix A and survey results are tabulated in Appendix B.
Background and Timeline
June 2014 RFP Issued. The Department of Planning and Development Review (PDR), with the Public Art Commission (PAC), issued a Request for Proposals (RFP) for the creation of a Public Art Master Plan to create a vision for the future of Richmond’s Public Art. The identified scope include the clarification of key themes and values, direction for the selection, creation, placement and maintenance of public art throughout the city, and identifying methods of integrating public art efforts into other planning investments in the city.
May 2015 RFP awarded. Gail Goldman and Gretchen Freeman, a nationally-known consulting team were selected and contracted with to lead the process to create a custom-tailored public art master plan for Richmond to elevate the arts programs, stimulate tourism and economic opportunity, provide for community collaborations, and showcase the unique character of Richmond’s already thriving art scene.
August 2015-March 2016. Stakeholder Interviews/Public Meetings. The consultant team interviewed 73 individuals, held 4 focus groups, convened 3 public meetings with 150 attendees, and conducted an online survey which generated 605 responses. City staff also conducted additional outreach with arts community stakeholders during this period.
Spring 2017 Draft Plan Released. The consultant team convened six (6) public meetings were held and the draft plan was posted online for public input and feedback. The input and comments were relayed to the consultant team by City staff. The Public Art Commission discussed the plan and its framework at the April, May, and July 2017 meetings.
August 2017. The Public Art Commission recommended approval of the plan as presented and referred to Planning Commission.
June 4, 2018. The Planning Commission recommended approval with the amendments shown in the attached documentation.
FISCAL IMPACT / COST: The Department Planning and Development Review does not anticipate any impact to the City’s budget for this or future fiscal years.
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS: The Department Planning and Development Review does not anticipate any fiscal implications from this proposal.
BUDGET AMENDMENT NECESSARY: No.
REVENUE TO CITY: None.
DESIRED EFFECTIVE DATE: Upon Adoption.
REQUESTED INTRODUCTION DATE: July 23, 2018
CITY COUNCIL PUBLIC HEARING DATE: September 10, 2018
REQUESTED AGENDA: Consent
RECOMMENDED COUNCIL COMMITTEE: None.
CONSIDERATION BY OTHER GOVERNMENTAL ENTITIES: City Planning Commission, June 4, 2018
AFFECTED AGENCIES: Office of Chief Administrative Officer
Law Department (for review of draft ordinance)
RELATIONSHIP TO EXISTING ORD. OR RES.: None.
ATTACHMENTS: Draft Ordinance, Public Art Master Plan, Proposed Amendments, Planning Commission Resolution
STAFF: Matthew J. Ebinger, AICP, Principal Planner, Land Use Administration (Room 511) 804-646-6308
Recommended Action
Key Issues:
Retain on Consent Agenda
Move to Regular Agenda
Refer Back to Committee
Remove from Council Agenda
Strike Withdrawn ---- Continue to: