May 10, 2011
COMMUNITY ARTS, EDUCATION,AND GRANTS COMMITTEE
Tuesday, May 10, 2011
3:00 p.m.
25 Van Ness Avenue,Suite 70
The meeting was called toorder at 3:09 p.m.
Commissioners Present: John Calloway, KimberleeStryker, and Sherri Young
Staff Present: Directorof Cultural Affairs Luis R. Cancel, Director of Grants E. San SanWong, Community Arts and Education Program Director Judy Nemzoff, CommunityArts and Education Program Manager Robynn Takayama, Cultural Equity GrantsProgram Associate Beatrice Thomas, Cultural Equity Grants Program Associate LucyK. Lin, Cultural Equity Grants Program Assistant Corinne Matesich, and CommunityArts and Education Program Associate Cristal Fiel
1. Cultural EquityGrants Program Director Report
Director of Grants San San Wong gave anoverview of the evolution of the Arts For Neighborhood Vitality grants program,formerly the Neighborhood Festivals Grants, which is funded by Grants for theArts (“GFTA”). GFTA has a grants category that supports the much larger paradesand festivals. These small grants were initially distributed as part of theArts Commission’s Neighborhood Arts Program, which is now Community Arts andEducation, and were awarded to social service organizations embedded withinneighborhoods but with limited arts and cultural activities. During thereorganization of the Arts Commission in 2009, all of the grantmakingactivities were consolidated into Cultural Equity Grants. At the same time,because of the City’s deficit, all departments were asked to focus on theircore functions; in order to address this mandate, CEG revised the purpose ofthe grants program to focus more on arts and cultural activities, and expandedits scope to include art walks. The program was re-titled as Arts ForNeighborhood Vitality. Director of Community Arts and Education Judy Nemzoffasserted that as a program that she had inherited originally, a lot ofinnovative thinking went into the redesign. She explained that it stillsupports the role of partnership, neighborhood and community but the arts focusaddresses the fact that the money is intended to fund the arts.
CEG Program Associate Beatrice Thomaspresented an overview of the applicant pool recommended for funding. Sheexplained that these grants are intended to celebrate neighborhoods and buildneighborhood cohesion by supporting arts activities where people live, andbringing together arts and non-arts entities. Funding will be distributed to severalneighborhoods that do not receive significant Arts Commission funding. Theprojected number of audiences is over 14,000.
The OMI Cultural Participation Projectserves the highly diverse Oceanview, Merced and Ingleside communities. They areentering their 11th year of producing this neighborhood festival. Performers arefrom the neighborhood. The organization shows an understanding of theirneighborhoods’ diversity by offering translated versions of festival materials;and in the past, there have been high levels of senior and youth attendance.They list many partners and a savvy outreach strategy.
The Excelsior Action Group’s (“EAG”) Artsand Music Festival is entering into its ninth year. It is the largest festivalin the neighborhood, and includes youth and artist representatives on theplanning committee. One of the Festival highlights is the youth talent show.Commissioner Stryker voiced concern over some staff review comments thatexpressed uncertainty regarding the organization. Ms. Thomas explained thecomments were more about grantsmanship and not the ability of the organizationto execute their project successfully. Ms. Wong further explained that CEGoffers panel comments to organizations as a form of technical assistance, tohelp them improve their applications.
The Marigold Project/Day of Dead has beenproduced for over 20 years, drawing from the Mission District and all over SanFrancisco. Many neighborhood residents and groups bring homemade altars. Thisyear they will use the funds to commission artists to create six large-scalealtars. They have partnerships with schools, afterschool programs, and the San FranciscoPolice Department. Commissioner Calloway added that the producing organizationmay have changed, but the event remains the same.
The Richmond District Neighborhood Center’sarts festival provides free art activities to children and their families. Theprogramming is multicultural with creative activities ranging from African beadmaking to Indian mosaics. They have diverse partners including the Departmentof the Environment and PG&E. Ms. Wong highlighted the fact that this is aneighborhood the Arts Commission has not had many opportunities to serve.
Genryu Arts/Gen Taiko is an organizationdeeply rooted in Japantown. They propose to produce Tsukimi Matsuri (AutumnMoon-viewing Festival), rooted in a cultural tradition, in the historic PeacePlaza. The festival will include neighborhood walking tours, and is scheduledin the fall, when there are fewer public cultural events in Japantown. Theperformers are of high quality and are deeply committed to the Festival’ssuccess. The current partners include schools, businesses and senior centers,which are diverse and intergenerational.
The only art walk in the applicant pool isUrban Solutions’ art walk around the 6th and Market streets area, which willhappen in conjunction with the 24 Days of Art. The proposal reflects theorganization’s belief that arts can stimulate economic revitalization within aneighborhood. The project has solid relationships with local businesses. Theartists and arts organizations are of high quality, representing a spectrum ofdisciplines and genres.
Commissioner Young asked why the grantamounts were so small. She expressed her concern that the award of $2,500 willnot go very far. Ms. Wong explained that a larger applicant pool had beenanticipated; she reminded commissioners that the applicants are required toprovide a cash match to the funding, and that even at $2,500, some will have towork hard to do so. Ms. Wong said that the remaining funds will roll over.
CommissionerCalloway made the following motion:
Motion toapprove recommendations to award six grants totaling $15,000 in the Arts ForNeighborhood Vitality grantsto the following organizations, and to authorize the Director of CulturalAffairs to enter into grant agreements with each for the amounts listed:
OMICultural Participation Project, $2,500
ExcelsiorAction Group, $2,500
MarigoldProject, $2,500
RichmondDistrict Neighborhood Center, $2,500
Genryu Arts/GenTaiko, $2,500
Urban Solutions, $2,500
Motionwas approved unanimously.
Ms.Wong followed the motion with a brief update on CEG’s grants cycle. The2011-2012 grants cycle has begun, starting with the Cultural Equity InitiativesLevel Two (CEI-L2). The Creative Space grant guidelines will be released nextweek.
2. Community Arts andEducation Program Director Report
Community Arts and Education(CAE) Program Director Judy Nemzoff gave an overview of the motion to enterinto a grant agreement with Community Initiatives. This partnership dates backto 2006 when SFAC lost funding from the California Arts Council to support anarts education assistant position. Since then, this annual grant allows CAE tobring in support for the arts education program.
Commissioner Calloway madethe following motion:
Motion to enterinto a 2011-2012 grant agreement with Community Initiatives in an amount not toexceed $50,000 to sustain arts education programs.
Motion was approvedunanimously.
Ms. Nemzoff announced that WritersCorps site books hadbeen published; four WritersCorps students joined Melissa Hung, WritersCorpsprogram manager, for a second trip to the White House where they would participatein writing workshops with nationally recognized poets; and a previous CAEphotography intern received photo credit for the cover of the President’sReport on Art and Humanities, 2009-2010. Ms. Nemzoff reminded the Committeethat the launch of Art in Storefronts will be on Friday, May 13, from 5 to 7p.m. This event will celebrate the culmination of the yearlong ARTery Project.
CAE Program Manager Robynn Takayama added that mapsof The ARTery Project would be printed in the Friday run of the San FranciscoExaminer. Through coupons to local merchants, these maps would make the tiebetween art and economic development, and build relationships with the merchantcommunity.
Commissioner Stryker commented that she took herstudents through a walking tour down Market Street from Embarcadero to CivicCenter every year, and this year, the revitalization in mid-Market provoked alot of conversation among her group.
Ms. Nemzoff announced that she would host a walkingtour of mid-Market with San Francisco Planning and Urban Research (“SPUR”) andAmy Ress of Public Architecture. The tour would cover the Art in Storefrontssites, Lights on Market Street, and Market Street Blooms, all elements partof The ARTery Project.
Ms. Nemzoff told the Committee that SFAC did notreceive funding from the National Endowment for the Arts to move forward withThe ARTery Project’s efforts. Director Cancel announced that he and the staff wouldlook for alternative sources of funding for the continuation of this project.He commented that there was great coverage of Art in Storefronts in The WallStreet Journal, and the success in both execution of the project and mediacoverage had made partnerships and collaborations easier to come by. Ms Nemzoffsaid, for example, that the luggage store was granted $3,000 from San FranciscoBeautiful to support the installation and maintenance of City of Green.
3. Cultural Center Report
Ms. Nemzoff told the Committee that theCultural Centers would be submit their FY2011-2012 Management and ProgrammingPlans and Budgets (“MPP”) after the Mayor’s budget was approved. The Centers wouldbe given an advance to operate through the summer. The Centers would have Julyto complete their MPPs for review at the full Commission meeting in September.
Ms. Nemzoff said she was waiting for theopinion of the City Attorney regarding entering grant agreements with the twovirtual cultural centers—Asian Pacific Islander Cultural Center (“APICC”) andQueer Cultural Center (“QCC”)—so they would no longer be sub-grantees ofSOMArts Cultural Center (“SOMArts”). This opportunity to enter into separategrant agreements would begin to build infrastructure in consideration of movingto a facility.
CommissionerCalloway asked if APICC had already been in the process of having its owncenter. Ms. Nemzoff clarified that APICC met with the Northern California LoanFund (“NCLF”) regarding this issue, but NCLF felt that APICC had to build moreinfrastructure before they have their own facility.
Director Cancel asked if the City Attorneycould provide specific guidance to the Centers regarding auditing. Ms. Nemzoffstated that she was waiting to hear back from Deputy City Attorney Adine Varah aboutaudits. Ms. Nemzoff clarified that sub-grantees do a financial review, which isdistinct from an audit.
Director Cancel insisted that all the CulturalCenters provide full audit statements to prevent inconsistency in financialreporting. Ms. Nemzoff explained that the grant agreements clearly state thatif you receive $250,000 or more you must receive an audit. She was checking inwith the City Attorney as to whether this refers to cumulative or sole sourceof income.
Commissioner Young stated that it would be helpfulto the discussion if the Committee knew how much the virtual centers werereceiving annually and what a full audit report means as compared to afinancial review.
4. Public Comment
Lex Leifheit, executive director of SOMArts, soughtthe Committee’s advice for moving forward with roof repairs before the close ofthe fiscal year. Commissioner Young recommended that SOMArts postpone roofrepairs, if the best repair is not currently within SOMArts’ budget. Ms.Leifheit said she would postpone roof repairs and make recommendations forshorter-term renovations.
5. New Business
Ms. Nemzoff told the Committee that there would be aYoung at Art Festival docent tour on Thursday, May 19, from 3:30 to 5 p.m.
On Friday, May 20, 49ers tight end Vernon Davis wouldannounce the first winner of the Vernon Davis Scholarship during the Young atArt Gala. Earlier that day, he would also be working with Where Art Lives LeadTeacher Cameron Moberg on a mural at the Tenderloin Boys & Girls Club.
6. Adjournment
There being no further business, the meetingwas adjourned at 4:26 p.m.
