HomeMy WebLinkAboutR-2009-093 Front Street and "A" Street - Donated Public Art Installation ExpenditureRESOLUTION NO. R-2009-93
A RESOLUTION approving the use of funds from the CBD Business and Capital
Improvement Fund 321 to install a donated public art piece at the
intersection of Front Street and "A" Street.
WHEREAS, public art is beneficial to the health of individuals and an important e e ent
of our quality of life; and
WHEREAS, the citizens of Yakima desire the opportunity for additional attractive
amenities in the downtown; and
WHEREAS, in partnership with Artist Trust, the Yakima Arts Giving Circle was formed
to promote an expanded artistic presence in Yakima's urban core by making direct grants to
established artists and artisans who make contributions to this area of the City of Yakima; and
WHEREAS, the Yakima Arts Giving Circle of Yakima has made a commitment for the
commission and placement of public art in the downtown; and
WHEREAS, the Yakima Arts Giving Circle previously donated "Abundance," a piece of
art located at the northeast corner of the intersection of Yakima Avenue and Second Street;
and
WHEREAS, the Yakima Arts Giving Circle wishes to donate a work in granite designed
to occupy the bump out at the intersection of Front Street and "A: Street; and
WHEREAS, the Council Arts Task Force and the North Front Street Improvement
Association approve of the installation of the artwork; and
WHEREAS, the Millennium Arts Foundation has accepted responsibility to maintain the
artwork; and
WHEREAS, the City Council deems it to be in the best interest of the City to provide
funds to prepare this site for a donated public art piece at the intersection of Front Street and
"A" Street, now, therefore,
BE IT RESOLVED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF YAKIMA:
The City Manager is authorized and directed to approve the expenditure of up to
$15,000 from the CBD Business and Capital Improvement Fund 321 to pay for the installation
of the donated art piece.
ADOPTED BY THE CITY COUNCIL this 7th day of July ,009.
ATTEST:
Citv Clerk
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na gCst . unc Comnru ee .pe,4
°uncifAct rY oc f rts Committee
Tuesday, June 3, 2009
City Council Members: Kathy Coffey, Bill Lover Absent Sonia Rodriguez
City Staff: Bill Cook, Bruce Benson, Bob Desgrosellier, Tammy Regimbal
Arts Giving Circle: Brooke Creswell, Corday Trick
Public Art Proposal:
CED received a letter dated May 5, 2009, from the Arts Giving Circle asking to meet with City
representatives regarding a commissioned work in granite designed to occupy the bump out at the
intersection of Front and A Streets. On May 26, Bill Cook, Bruce Benson and Bob Desgrosellier
met with artist Will Robinson and Yakima Arts Giving Circle representatives Brooke Creswell and
Sally Kincaid. The artist showed a DVD of some of his public art and talked about specifics of the
Yakima project. The granite sculpture will be approximately six to seven feet in height and will be
pinned to a granite slab. The slab will have a footprint of approximately six feet by 10 feet and will
be between twelve and twenty-two inches high, and will be stepped on one end. Bricks will be
removed from the bump out to set the sculpture on a sand base. The sculpture itself will be three
intertwined carved granite stones, hopefully in varying colors. The sculpture will be moveable
(although difficult to move because of its weight). Installation on the site should take two to three
hours. The artist estimates two to three months time is needed to create the piece. Bruce Benson
said from a planning perspective a right of way use permit would be required. Bob Desgrosellier
will work with the artiston the engineering requirements, including electricity to light the piece. The
artist will design the piece with lighting in mind, but it is not a necessity. However, the Arts Giving
Circle would strongly prefer that the piece be lit as soon as possible. A model of the piece is on
display at Gilbert Cellars.
On June 2 the Council Ad Hoc Arts Committee met with Arts Giving Circle representatives Brooke
Creswell and Corday Trick and City representatives Bill Cook, Bruce Benson and Bob
Desgrosellier. Brooke gave the Committee some of the background of the sculpture and the artist.
A request for proposals was circulated nationwide. Twenty proposals were received. The eight
person, selection panel included four practicing artists. They recommended three artists to the Arts
Giving Circle. Several members of the Arts Giving Circle were already familiar with Will Robinson's
work and his concept of the three rings of granite was chosen. The final design depends on the
boulders that the artist is able to procure. If the process moves along as hoped, installation could
be in October 2009. The cost of the project to the Arts Giving Circle is $25,000.
Bob Desgrosellier reported that he has been looking at bringing electricity to the site. It appears
that coming from the north may be best. It may be necessary to contact BNSF.
The Millennium foundation will be asked to send a letter committing to maintenance of the
sculpture. The North Front Street Association was also asked to send a letter of support.
Kathy Coffey and Bill Lover were in favor of forwarding a resolution to the full Council to accept the
art piece.
Bill Cook has a call in to Michael Sullivan regarding the historic requirements of the area. He hopes
to have figures for the placement of the item and the electrical requirements soon. The artist will
supply an estimate of the def ery costs.
Kathy Coffey, grir
Y
Yakima City Council Arts: Task Force
J1inutes from the meeting of
Monday, June 22, 2009
Present: Kathy Coffey,BiII Cook, Joan Davenport, John Baule, Elizabeth Miller, Jessica Moskwa,
Noel Moxley, Gay Parker
Agenda: Recommendation regarding donated art piece -
Background: At their regular business meeting on June 16, 2009, the Yakima City Council
considered a resolution to approve the installation of a donated public art piece (a granite
sculpture) at the intersection of Front Street and "A" Street. The resolution had been previously
recommended for approval by the Council Ad Hoc Arts Committee. During the discussion at the
Council meeting, Carl Pasten, a member of the North Front Street Improvement Association and a
Historic Preservation Commissioner, requested the involvement of the Historic Preservation
Commission in the decision process. As a result of his request, the art piece will be discussed at
the June 24 meeting of the Historic Preservation Commission. Also during discussion at the
June 16th Council meeting, Brooke Creswell of the Yakima Arts Giving Circle requested review of
the art piece by the Yakima City Council Arts Task Force.
Arts Task Force June 22nd discussion regarding the second piece of public art to be
donated to the City of Yakima by the Yakima Arts Giving Circle:
The Task Force was brought up to date on the process thus far. Bill Cook reported that his recent
research, done in part with assistance from Michael Sullivan of Artifacts Architectural Consulting,
indicates that it is appropriate for a historic preservation commission to review and comment on the
process of placing public art in a historic district. Joan Davenport spoke briefly about the
Department of Interior Standards for Rehabilitation. It was noted that the landscaping that
surrounds the proposed sculpture location is on land owned by BNSF. Bill Cook suggested that it
would be worth inquiring if CDY (Committee for Downtown Yakima) could take over the
landscaping duties at the site.
Everyone agreed that the process to place public art should include a variety of ways for the public
to provide input. The donation of a second piece of art highlights the need for Yakima to adopt a
standard "public art process." John Baule will work on a draft to be considered at the next task
force meeting. In regard to the current donation, the task force makes the following
recommendation to the City Council:
"The Yakima City Council Arts Task Force is delighted that another piece of public art has been
gifted to the city. We look forward to furthering the collaboration between the City of Yakima and
the Yakima Arts Giving Circle in completion of the final steps in design and installation of this
sculpture."
Co (ICA/1 l..
Kathy Cotrey, Arts Tc Force hair
NFSIA MEETING JULY 9, 2008
RECEIVED
JUN 0 9 2009
CITY OF YAKIMA
COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT
GEORGE INTRODUCED PEGGY LEWIS REPRESENTING THE YAKIMA ARTS GIVING CIRCLE.
PEGGY JOINED US IN ORDER TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS WE HAD CONCERNING THE
SCULPTURE BY STEVE JENSEN. THE SCULPTURE CAN BE SEEN AT THE SHOPKEEPER AND
IS BEING CONSIDERED FOR THE BUMPOUT LOCATION ON N. FRONT STREET. THERE WAS
MUCH DISCUSSION AND A MOTION WAS MADE AND PASSED TO APPROVE THE
PLACEMENT OF A SCULPTURE IN THE BUMPOUT. THIS DOES NOT MEAN THAT THIS
PARTICULAR PIECE WILL BE PLACED IN THE BUMPOUT; ONLY THAT THE NORTH FRONT
STREET GROUP APPROVES THE IDEA. WE ALSO DISCUSSED THE POSSIBLILITY OF THEIR
BEING UNDERPASS MONEY FOR THE INSTALLATION OF THE SCULPTURE.
CARL GAVE US A REPORT OF THE AWC EVENT. GENERALY THE EVENT WENT WELL. THE
GROUP AWC HAD MANY MANY MORE FOLKS WANTING TO GET IN THAN THEY
EXPECTED, THEY WERE TURNED AWAY. WE HAD SOME LICENSING ISSUES AND TEAR
DOWN WASN'T AS GOOD AS EXPECTED. WE FEEL WE SHOULD ESTABLISH SOME
GUIDELINES FOR EVENTS ON THE BLOCK:
1. WE WILL DICTATE WHERE THE ROPES ARE PLACED, WHERE PERIMITERS ARE. B
2. THERE WILL BE A $1000. FEE FOR CLOSING THE BLOCK -ACCESS TO OUR PARKING
LOTS SO ON..
3. INSURANCE WILL BE REQUIRED COVERING THE OFFICERS OF NFSIA AND ALL
MEMBERS OF NFSIA.
4. SECURITY IS REQUIRED
THERE WAS DISCUSSION ABOUT THE BERT FEST IDEA BEING THE THIRD WEEKEND IN
JULY.
MEETING ADJOURNED
SHARON TRICK
SECRETARY
June 9, 2009
Dear City Council,
Plans have been put in motion to add the Yakima Arts Giving Circle Will Robinson
sculpture to the Millennium Foundation's Public Art Inventory.
Per Foundation by-laws, Allied Arts board will be asked to approve adding the sculpture
to the Inventory at its monthly meeting June 23, and then the Foundation board will
make final approval. We expect these steps to be complete by July 10, 2009.
Please be advised that the Foundation covers regular maintenance, not installation, nor
damages for which a piece would need to be insured.
I have taken excerpts from our by-laws that are relevant to this installation:
City of Yakima Department of Parks & Recreation, acting as the city's designee, will
oversee the maintenance of designated public art, alerting Allied Arts of Yakima Valley
(AA YV) to needed repairs/replacements.
II, PUBLICA T INVENTORY Public Art pieces maintained by the Foundation will be
determined and managed in the following manner: .
a. All art, including the Plaza, that will be maintained by the Foundation must be placed
on the Public Art Inventory (PAI) maintained by Allied Arts of Yakima Valley (AA YV).
Only public art that is listed on the PAI will be eligible for maintenance funds from the
Foundation
b. To be placed on the PAI, the Board of Directors of AAYV must approve the piece of
art. The AA YV Board will then submit PAI additions or changes to the Foundation Board
for final approval of inclusion. That approval will be noted and dated on the PAL
Respectfully submitted,
Jessica Moskwa
Executive Director, Allied Arts
Board Member, Millennium Foundation
gallied arts 5000 W. Lincoln Ave., Yakima, WA 98908 • (P) 509.966.0930
OF YAKIMA VALLEY (W) www.alliedartsyakima.org • (E) info®alliedartsyakima.org
6/22/09
Hi Joan, Bill,
I think it's great that the Yakima Landmarks Commission is dealing with such a broad variety of issues so
early in its existence. We all learn from doing but hopefully some routines will eventually emerge.
The situation where a landmark commission is required to review a free standing public artwork not
directly attached to a historic resource is a bit out of the norm. Basically, the Landmark Commission's (LPC)
authority is tied to the protection and enhancement of cultural and historic resources either as individual
sites or within a defined historic district. Using the Secretary of Interior's Standards for
rehabilitation/restoration, the Commission (LPC) uses its best judgment to encourage and permit physical
changes and improvements that contribute to the preservation of historic resources and character.
Typically the legal and administrative authority is clearest regarding proposed actions such as demolitions,
building rehabilitations and significant exterior alterations requiring a building permit. Within historic
districts LPCs typically have design review authority over features such as signage, streetscape
improvements, street furniture and landscaping on public property.
The proposal of a contemporary public artwork for location within a historic district should be reviewed by
the LPC but their review should be focused on how the massing, scale and siting of the work affects the
historic resources and character of the district. They should stay away from judging the aesthetic merits of
the art unless issues of creative reference or craftsmanship directly relate to the physical or historical
character of the district. Murals that inaccurately portray past events or people are an example of where
the Commission's expertise should be extended.
The Secretary of Interior Standards can and should be applied to the review process for the artwork
proposal. Standards 9 & 10 are probably most pertinent:
9. New additions, exterior alterations, or related new construction will not destroy historic
materials, features, and spatial relationships that characterize the property. The new work will
be differentiated from the old and will be compatible with the historic materials, features, size,
scale and proportion, and massing to protect the integrity of the property and its environment.
10. New additions and adjacent or related new construction will be undertaken in such a manner
that, if removed in the future, the essential form and integrity of the historic property and its
environment would be unimpaired.
Currently the Pike Street Market Historic Commission is reviewing a proposed artwork in Victor Steinbruck
Park, the Pioneer Square Historic Commission and the Tacoma Landmark Commission has also successfully
dealt with a similar proposals. I'm sure the Yakima Landmarks Commission will handle the Front Street
issue with similar success.
Regards,
Michael
Michael Sean Sullivan
Artifacts Consulting Inc.
201 North Yakima Avenue
Tacoma WA. 98403
253.572.4599
www.artifacts-inc.com
ITEM TITLE:
SUBMITTED BY:
BUSINESS OF THE CITY COUNCIL
YAKIMA, WASHINGTON
AGENDA STATEMENT
Item No. S
For meeting of: July 7, 2009
A Resolution approving the expenditure of up to $15,000 from
the CBD Business and Capital. Improvement Fund 321 to install
a donated public art piece at the intersection of Front Street and
"A" Street.
William R. Cook,
Director of Community and Economic Development
CONTACT PERSON/TELEPHONE: Bill Cook, 575-6113
SUMMARY EXPLANATION:
This item was continued from the June 16, 2009 City Council meeting. At the June 16th meeting,
testimony from one of the property owners in the Old North Yakima Historic District expressed concern
about the proposed art within the Historic District and noted that the Yakima Historic Preservation
Commission had not been given a chance to review the artwork placement.
Council action on this item was deferred to July 7th meeting in order to provide the Historic Preservation
Commission an opportunity to review the proposal. The Historic Preservation Commission met on June
24th and after discussion commented in a split vote (5-2) "The proposed artwork is not in keeping with
the Historic District and should be located elsewhere in downtown Yakima". The Historic Preservation
Commission praised the work of the Giving Circle. The Historic Preservation Commission. did not cite
specific qualities or standards which were inconsistent with the Historic District. ,
The Yakima Council Ad Hoc Arts Committee was established to provide recommendations regarding
public art and related matters. On June 3, 2009 the Council Ad Hoc Committee (Coffey and Lover,
Rodriguez absent) met with members of the Arts Giving Circle and city staff to review this proposal.
They voted to send a resolution to the full City Council to accept the art.
--Continued on page 2—
Resolution X Other (Specify) letters and background Contract
Funding Source CBD Capital Improvement Fu d 321
APPROVED FOR SUBMITTAL: MAS City Manager
STAFF RECOMMENDATION: Approve Resolution
BOARD/COMMISSION/COMMITTEE RECOMMENDATION:
1. The Council Ad Hoc Committee on Public Art recommended approval of the
proposal
2. The Council Arts Task Force recommended approval of the donation and
placement of the art piece.
3. The Historic Preservation Commission recommends the artwork is not consistent
within the Historic District and it should be placed elsewhere in the downtown.
4. The Committee for Downtown Yakima and the Front Street improvement
Association both recommend the proposed artwork and its location.
COUNCIL ACTION:
--Page 2 --
The City Council also established a citizen arts advisory committee (12/08), the "Arts Task Force.' At
their June 22"1 meeting, this, advisory committee made the following recommendation: "The Yakima
City Council Arts Task Force is delighted that another piece of public art has been gifted to the city. We
look forward to furthering the collaboration between the City of Yakima and the Yakima Arts Giving
Circle in completion of the final steps in design and installation of this sculpture." The minutes from this
meeting are attached.
Prior to the review .of the artwork by the Historic. Preservation Commission, staff requested 'written
guidelines for the Commission to use in their review from Michael'Sullivan, a professional Historic
Preservationist who has previously advised the City of Yakima on the various matters related to our
city ordinance and the Barge -Chestnut Historic District and other related matters: His letter was shared,
with the Historic Preservation Commission and is attached. In summary, he noted that it is very
common for cities to place contemporary art in historic districts and this piece may be regarded as
meeting the applicable standards:
The Yakima Arts Giving Circle (YAGC) commissioned this second piece of public art to donate to the
City of Yakima. After a nationwide request for proposals, they selected Bremerton sculptor, Will
Robinson to create a work in granite designed to occupy the bump out at the intersection of Front and
"A" Streets. The sculpture will consist of 'three intertwined carved granite stones of varying color and
will sit on a granite slab. The structure will be approximately eight feet in height. The artist provided this
statement describing the intent of the piece:
"I saw the area as needing something of scale, a work that would hopefully
draw people "to.it. Physically the piece will be alternately smooth and rough
asking, to be touched. The circular shapes could evoke visual remembrances of
railroad steam engines.,., or alternately coils of vine -like shapes. I would
imagine different people will imagine different things"
The YAGC project proposal requested a piece of art that would be compatible with its environment, but
did not require that the piece be historic, in style or content. Also, they desired' a work that willfit with
the general theme of Tight, a major component of the artistic and architectural revitalization of Yakima's
urban core and a natural feature of the Yakima environment. Although electricity is not immediately
available to the site, the Council Ad Hoc Arts Committee and the YAGC prefer that the sculpture be lit,
either upon installation �r as soon after as possible thereafter. The artist will design the base of the
piece so that lighting can be added on site either during or after installation. .
A letter of support for the proposed artwork from the North Front Street Improvement Association
(NFSIA), along with meeting minutes from a July 9, 2008, NFSIA meeting approving the placement of a.
sculpture in this location. The -Committee for Downtown Yakima met on July 1, 2009 and endorsed the
artwork in its proposed location.
The Millennium Arts Foundation has committed to the long term maintenance and repair of the
sculpture. A letter that details the Millennium Arts Foundation's process to offer this. commitment to the
project is attached.
Artist Will Robinson expects the sculpture to be complete and ready to be installed at the 'intersection of
North Front Street and "A" Street in October 2009. Based on conversations with area contractors, it is
estimated that the total cost to the City toprepare the site for the sculpture will be approximately
$15,000, includingthecost to bring electricity to the site and connect to the sculpture. The funds to
cover the cost of the construction and placement of the sculpture will come from the CBD Business and -
Capital Improvement Fund 321. Approval of the attached resolution would authorize and direct the City
Manager to approve the disbursement of funds from the CBD and Capital Improvement Fund 321 to
pay for the installation of the donated art piece. 0 -