City and County of San FranciscoSan Francisco Arts Commission

January 4, 2010

Full Commission - January 4, 2010



MEETING OF THE FULL ARTS COMMISSION
Monday, January 4, 2010
3:00 p.m.
City Hall Room 416


Minutes

President Johnston called the meeting to order at 3:11 p.m.

  1. Roll Call
    Commissioners Present
    P.J. Johnston, President
    JD Beltran
    Nínive Calegari
    Gregory Chew
    Leo Chow
    Amy Chuang
    Lorraine García-Nakata
    Astrid Haryati
    Barbara Sklar
    Ron Miguel, ex officio

    Commissioners Absent
    Maya Draisin, Vice President
    John Calloway
    Topher Delaney
    Sherene Melania
    Cass Calder Smith
    Sherri Young

  2. Approval of Minutes
    RESOLUTION NO. 0104-10-001:
    Motion to approve October 5, 2009 Minutes.

    The remaining items were withdrawn.

  3. President’s Report
    President Johnston began with good wishes for the new year. He distributed the 2010 meeting schedule, and reported that since Mr. Cancel was still in Brazil, Director of Programs Jill Manton would be making the Director’s report on his behalf. President Johnston took the opportunity to look back at the past year and pronounced it impressive. He said that during his six-year tenure, the Commission has continued to grapple with how to better fulfill its role in the larger arts community, and be a force in the larger community, recognized in the mainstream media, not only the arts media. He argued that this is important because the people in San Francisco who don’t apply for grants, who don’t come to meetings or shows are still very much the constituents of the Arts Commission, and it is important that the Commission bring the arts to them. President Johnston was proud of a good year expanding the Arts Commission’s reach, and he commended the staff for their hard work. He praised the excellence of the Gallery shows, public art, Art in Storefronts, Deep Roots and many other projects; the Commission applauded staff. President Johnston also praised Public Art Project Manager Kate Patterson for a fantastic job reaching the press and the media.

    President Johnston noted that San Francisco Chronicle critic Kenneth Baker included the Arts Commission Gallery’s “10 x 10 x 10” in his Top Ten list for 2009, praising it as “a museum-worthy show.” President Johnston noted that it is a point of pride to draw the attention of this reviewer. President Johnston also reported that Art in Storefronts has had national press coverage, and the City Hall Lighthouse for the Blind show was profiled in the New York Times. He thought it was important to recognize, in the face of the many challenges, that the Arts Commission has done a lot of very good work in the past year.

    President Johnston warned that the budget discussions look bad, and getting worse, even as bad as the previous year when the Commission lost key staff. He advised that the Executive Committee would be grappling with the budget over the next couple of months, and he invited all Commissioners to attend these meetings, where the “nitty-gritty” work is done. He wondered how the budget could be cut further when the agency has already been cut to the bone, though he pledged to work with the Mayor’s Budget Office.

    President Johnston reported that the strategic plan is moving forward, and the Executive Committee has expressed a desire to have the plan better articulate the agency’s vision. He noted that some of the plan’s goals had unanimous support and others didn’t; he expected that the full Commission likewise would not fully embrace all of the goals. He noted that the strategic plan can be helpful in giving direction over the next three years, but that the Arts Commission is a government agency, subject to budget realities, political realities and public process in taking any actions. The plan, he said, cannot settle every question. Finally, he promised more discussion at the next meeting.

  4. Director’s Report
    In the absence of Mr. Cancel, Director of Programs Jill Manton wished everyone a happy new year, and thanked the Commissioners for giving so much of their time as volunteers in service to the City.

    She explained that in addition to reading the Director’s report which Mr. Cancel had sent, she had also asked staff to report a few highlights from each program, to help Commissioners understand what staff does day-to-day.

    Ms. Manton reported that there had been two staff meetings over the preceding holiday weeks, with about two-thirds of the staff participating, to discuss the strategic plan. She said that the Executive Committee’s comments had been very helpful to staff discussions. She expected to incorporate all that input into a revision of the plan for review by the Committee at its January 25 meeting.

    Ms. Manton read Mr. Cancel’s report to the Commission.

    Mr. Cancel acknowledged the management team which has met weekly. He explained that the Arts Commission has collaborated with other City departments, as in the new Art in Storefronts program, or the StreetSmARTS anti-graffiti initiative, supported by a grant of $10,000 from the City Administrator’s office, secured by the efforts of Ms. Manton and staff.

    Mr. Cancel’s report noted the challenge of the City’s $522 million budget deficit, and predicted that it would mean cuts to the Cultural Centers and to grants. He outlined the argument he is making to the Mayor’s Budget Office, that further staff cuts would make it impossible for the agency to fulfill its legislative mandates. He also described a technical argument, a challenge to the baseline budget number upon which the cuts were based. Mr. Cancel’s report indicated that he planned to present the proposed budget submission to the full Commission at its February meeting, in advance of the Mayor’s due date of February 22. He anticipated presenting the Strategic Plan at the same meeting.

    Ms. Manton then introduced staff for summary reports. Street Artists Program Director Howard Lazar began his report with the announcement that he has been honored with a public managerial excellence award which will be presented by the Mayor at the end of February.

    Mr. Lazar reported that although the Street Artists Program began decades ago with some resistance from more conventional merchants and elements of City government, street artists are now being invited to new areas. He cited a mini-plaza at 17th and Market Streets, and he noted the success of artists now selling at United Nations Plaza. Mr. Lazar also reported that the San Francisco Chronicle had featured the street artists at Justin Herman Plaza as a holiday shopping destination, and thanked Ms. Patterson for her work getting that story out.

    Civic Design Review and Administration Program Manager Vicky Knoop reported that Civic Design Review had some successes raising the bar for the City’s architecture. She reported that the Committee members were strongly determined to foster excellence, noting improvements in client-architect relationships; renewed emphasis on design philosophy; and the development of design prototypes. In the last six months, the program brought Bureau of Architecture staff together with Committee members and staff in design charrettes. The program has also begun work on creating an annual award for design excellence, and is the first to go paperless in distributing packets in preparation for Committee meetings.

    Public Art Program Director Susan Pontious reported on the Public Art Program and the Civic Art Collection; these two programs were merged in the last couple of years. She explained that the program was created by legislation in 1969, celebrating its fortieth anniversary last year. She reported that the program has 9.5 FTE staff positions, manages 71 contracts for $9.7 million, and has 59 active projects. Ms. Pontious explained that three new people had joined the staff in the past year: Public Art Program Manager Jennifer Lovvorn, Public Art Project Manager Kate Patterson, and Public Art Program Accountant Amanda Kwong. Ms. Pontious explained that Ms. Kwong is responsible for tracking and reconciling some 90 funding sources, and all the payments associated with Public Art projects. Ms. Pontious highlighted the dedication of Maya Lin’s monument What is Missing? at the Academy of Sciences, which received national and international press coverage. She added that Brian Goggin’s 2008 Language of the Birds was recognized in 2009 as one of the year’s best public artworks. She reported that a dozen or so projects in the neighborhoods were completed, including pools, streetscapes and libraries. She reported that installation of over 110 public artworks at Laguna Honda Hospital has begun, and that this very large project, lasting ten years, should be completed in the next few months. Ms. Pontious listed a number of other successes and recognitions, for both temporary and permanent artworks, including the Harvey Milk bust at City Hall, which led to a request that the program work on a memorial at the War Memorial.

    Collections Senior Registrar Allison Cummings reported that the Civic Art Collection oversees some 3,800 objects, including monuments, frescoes at Coit Tower, jewelry, and all of the works created through the Public Art Program. The collection is worth in excess of $90 million, and the City budgets $15,000 annually to care for it. In 2009, she reported, eleven projects were accepted into the collection, and fifty more are in progress. She reported that there were more than thirty incidents of vandalism, more than in the previous year. She reported on significant conservation projects underway or recently completed, including Bufano sculptures at Valencia Gardens and at San Francisco General Hospital, as well as the illuminated Ribbon sculpture along the Embarcadero.

    Ms. Cummings reported that the popular office loan program, placing artworks from the collection into City offices, has been revamped with a new funding structure. It had been suspended for lack of funding. She reported that the first full inventory of the collection had been completed, and that much of the collection data is now online. Noting that Development Director Rachelle Axel would discuss this further, she reported that the Collections staff has begun some interesting community partnerships, with the San Francisco Art Dealers Association (“SFADA”), the Jewish Community Federation, the Foundation of the American Institute for Conservation of Historic and Artistic Works, the National Endowment for the Humanities, and the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art (“SFMOMA”). These arrangements will help with crucial conservation and restoration of some of the City’s valuable artworks.

    Ms. Axel began her report by noting that the Development office was relatively new, created in 2007 in response to findings of the Arts Task Force. She distributed a single-page summary to the Commission, indicating that the difficult economy has depressed fundraising in the past year as compared to the first year of the program. She explained that this has encouraged her to consider new ideas and approaches; she was hopeful that the new partnerships would be very fruitful, adding that she has been in discussions with the SFADA for several months. She noted that the San Francisco Arts Commission was one of the first such agencies created in the nation, and that other cities were looking to San Francisco on the question of managing and funding long-deferred maintenance of public artworks and monuments. Ms. Axel reported that the Jewish Community Federation is helping the agency to deal with vandalism at the Holocaust Memorial, which has been targeted several times. She noted that the StreetSmARTS initiative, under the direction of Community Arts and Education Program Director Judy Nemzoff, was aimed at prevention of vandalism, while the partnership with the Jewish Community Federation worked to repair the damage done by vandals.

    She also reported that she has been pursuing individual donors, and investigating the idea of a “friends of the arts” organization, though originally with some skepticism. She noted that the search for public art conservation funds did not place the Arts Commission in competition with its grantees for funding from other sources.

    Gallery Director Meg Shiffler thanked President Johnston and Ms. Manton for acknowledging the recent successes in the press, noting that the Gallery’s show is the only one on Mr. Baker’s list not mounted by a “major” institution. She reported that in the last year the Gallery mounted twelve installations in three venues, and published a catalogue for ImPossible! 8 Chinese Artists Engage Absurdity, funded by an ambitious “Big 20” campaign.

    She reported that Spiraling Echoes, Bill Fontana’s sound installation in the City Hall Rotunda, had closed in December; she noted that the piece required almost three years of planning, and credited the piece with spurring SFMOMA’s lifetime award to Fontana. [triennial, 80th anniversary, international artist?] She reported that, having abandoned the traditional fundraising tactic of auctioning artwork donated by artists, the Gallery held its first Passport fundraising event in the fall. The event highlighted the Mission district, and raised between $5,000 and $6,000, twice what was projected. She announced the opening on February 12 of the first of three big exhibitions marking the fortieth anniversary of the Gallery. Finally, Ms. Shiffler announced that she had been asked to make two presentations during SFMOMA’s marathon seventy-fifth anniversary event.

    Commissioner Beltran commented that one of her first solo shows was at the Arts Commission Gallery under the leadrship of Rupert Jenkins, and during her tenure on the Gallery board, they had hours of agonized discussion about how the Gallery could be seen as a serious venue. She said that she was very proud of what the Gallery has accomplished.

    Kate Patterson, Public Art Project Manager for communications and community outreach, began by acknowledging her colleagues. She explained that in 2009, Mr. Cancel established three cross-program committees, including the Communications and New Media Committee, which she co-chairs. She reported that the Committee has completed a style guide, and developed a review policy for the Commission’s messages. The Committee is tracking statistics for both print and broadcast as well as new media. She noted that Facebook and SFGate are the two biggest sources of contacts. She reviewed press highlights for the year, including the New York Times, Time, a dozen television reports (including the Spanish-language Univision), and several radio stories and interviews. Ms. Patterson credited her co-chair, Community Arts and Education Program Associate Robynn Takayama, as the lead Twitterer and Facebook poster for the agency. She reported that the Arts Commission had 939 Facebook fans in December (up 47% from August), and 1,300 followers on Twitter. She also reported more than 8,700 viewers of Culture Wire, the agency’s online/cable show produced with the City’s SFGTV.

    Finally, Ms. Manton reported that she and staff are continuing to work on new legislation for percent-for-art funding. She also reported that guidelines for the acceptance and placement of memorial busts in City Hall have been finalized.

    President Johnston thanked staff for their reports and Commissioners for their attention. He concluded that this time at the beginning of the new year was a good time to take stock.

  5. Consent Calendar
    RESOLUTION NO. 0104-10-002:

    Approval: RESOLVED, that this Commission does hereby adopt the following items on the Consent Calendar and their related Resolutions:

    Approval of Committee Minutes

    1. RESOLUTION NO. 0104-10-003: Motion to approve the Civic Design Review Committee Meeting Minutes of September 21, 2009.
    2. RESOLUTION NO. 0104-10-004: Motion to approve the Civic Design Review Committee Meeting Minutes of October 19, 2009.
    3. RESOLUTION NO. 0104-10-005: Motion to approve the Community Arts, Education, and Grants Committee Meeting Minutes of December 8, 2009.
    4. RESOLUTION NO. 0104-10-006: Motion to approve the Visual Arts Committee Meeting Minutes of December 16, 2009.

      Community Arts, Education and Grants Committee Recommendations (December 8, 2009)

    5. RESOLUTION NO. 0104-10-007: Motion to approve recommendations to award seventeen grants totaling $333,750 in the 2009-2010 cycle of Arts & Communities: Innovative Partnerships grants to the following organizations and individual artists, and to authorize the Director of Cultural Affairs to enter into grant agreements with each for the amounts listed:
      Asian Women’s Shelter, $25,000
      Chinese Culture Foundation of San Francisco, $10,000
      Chinese Progressive Association, $10,000
      Croatian American Cultural Center, $25,000
      Dance Brigade, $20,000
      Deanne Morizono Meyers, $22,500
      Fifth Stream Music, $10,000
      Flyaway Productions, $22,500
      GK Callahan, $20,000
      Intersection for the Arts, $18,750
      Kid Serve Youth Murals, $25,000
      Kulintang Arts Inc., $22,500
      Mary Jean Robertson, $25,000
      Out of Site: Center for Arts Education, $10,000
      Queer Cultural Center, $25,000
      Raissa Simpson, $22,500
      Ruby’s Clay Studio and Gallery, $20,000
    6. RESOLUTION NO. 0104-10-008: Motion to approve the following individuals as grant application review panelists for Cultural Equity Initiatives Level I:
      Julie Fry, program officer, William and Flora Hewlett Foundation
      Renee Heider, executive director, Destiny Arts Center
      Roko Kawai, dancer, choreographer and teacher
      An Lu, program specialist for Arts Council Silicon Valley
      Wendy Levy, director of creative programming, Bay Area Video Action Coalition
      Rebeka Rodriguez, photographer, curator and arts administrator
      Jen Soriano, communications strategist, musician and nonprofit consultant
      Shiree Teng, independent consultant

      Visual Arts Committee Recommendations (December 16, 2009)

    7. RESOLUTION NO. 0104-10-009: Motion to approve an honorarium in the amount of $2000 ($1000 for research and development, and $1000 upon delivery of artwork) to the following artists for newly commissioned artwork for the SFAC Gallery’s 40th Anniversary celebration: Gay Outlaw and Taro Hattori.
    8. RESOLUTION NO. 0104-10-010: Motion to approve and accept into the Civic Art Collection Re-Connection/Re-Cognition, 2007, ten fiberglass sculptures by Linnea Glatt, located in the south courtyard of the North Residence at Laguna Honda Hospital and Rehabilitation Center.
    9. RESOLUTION NO. 0104-10-011: Motion to approve the following pool of arts professionals for the Tatubi Plaza artist selection panel: Leo Bersmina (artist); Michael Arcega (artist), Johanna Poethig (artist), Rupert Garcia (artist), Owen Smith (artist), Po Shu Wang (artist), Jenifer K Wofford (artist), and Stephanie Syjuco (artist).
    10. RESOLUTION NO. 0104-10-012: Motion to approve artist Beliz Brother’s images for the North Residence Building at Laguna Honda Hospital and Rehabilitation Center.
    11. RESOLUTION NO. 0104-10-013: Motion to approve artist Diana Pumpelly Bates’ final design for the entry gate at Laguna Honda Hospital and Rehabilitation Center.
    12. RESOLUTION NO. 0104-10-014: Motion to approve artist Eric Powell’s proposal for Cayuga Playground as recommended by the Cayuga Playground Artist Selection Panel.
    13. RESOLUTION NO. 0104-10-015: Motion to authorize the Director of Cultural Affairs to enter into a contract with artist Eric Powell for design, fabrication, transportation and installation/consultation during installation of artwork for Cayuga Playground in an amount not to exceed $78,000.
    14. RESOLUTION NO. 0104-10-016: Motion to approve the preliminary design illustration by Lena Wolff for a third artwork to be translated into mosaic and installed on the second floor of the San Francisco Acute Care Unit.
    15. RESOLUTION NO. 0104-10-017: Motion to approve the public art project approach as detailed in the Mission Playground Public Art Project Outline and revised by the Committee.
    16. RESOLUTION NO. 0104-10-018: Motion to approve the following arts professionals as potential selection panelists for the Mission Playground Public Art Project: Maurizzio Hector Pineda, Gallery Coordinator, Mission Cultural Center for Latino Arts; Jafon Hakkinen, Receiver Gallery; Raquel de Anda, Associate Curator, Galeria de la Raza; Justin Hoover, Curator of Visual Arts, SOMArts; Michelle Mansour, Administrative Director, Root Division.
    17. RESOLUTION NO. 0104-10-019: Motion to approve the recommendation of the following seven artists and two artist alternates as finalists for two art opportunities at the Central Subway Chinatown Station by the Chinatown Station Artist Selection Panel: Ming Fay, Yomei Hou, May Sun, with alternate Arlan Huang, for the landmark station opportunity; and Carl Cheng, Tomei Arai, Yunfei Ji, and Faye Zhang, with alternate Chusien Chang, for the wayfinding art opportunity; and to authorize the payment of an honorarium not to exceed $8,000 to each finalist to develop preliminary artwork proposals.
    18. RESOLUTION NO. 0104-10-020: Motion to approve the recommendation of the following six artists and two artist alternates as finalists for two art opportunities at the Central Subway Moscone Station by the Moscone Station Artist Selection Panel: Brian Tolle, Joyce Hsu, Catherine Wagner, with alternate artist team Rosario Marquardt and Roberto Behar, for the landmark station opportunity; and Tom Otterness, artist team Mildred Howard and Michael Bogan, and Michele Oka Doner, with alternate Janet Zweig, for the wayfinding art opportunity; and to authorize the payment of an honorarium not to exceed $8,000 to each finalist to develop preliminary artwork proposals.
    19. RESOLUTION NO. 0104-10-021: Motion to approve the recommendation of the following six artists and artist teams and two artist alternates as finalists for two art opportunities at the Central Subway Union Square/Market Street Station by the Union Square/Market Street Station Artist Selection Panel: Brian Goggin, Ilya and Emilia Kabakov, and Erwin Redl, with alternate Lawrence Argent, for the landmark station opportunity; and Michael Davis and Susan Schwartzenberg, Keith Godard, and Jim Campbell and Werner Klotz, with alternate Christian Moeller, for the wayfinding opportunity; and to authorize the payment of an honorarium not to exceed $8,000 to each finalist to develop preliminary artwork proposals.

  6. Committee Reports and Committee Matters
    1. Executive Committee—P.J. Johnston, Chair
      1. President Johnston made no further report.
    2. Civic Design Review Committee—Cass Calder Smith, Chair
      1. In the absence of Commmissioner Smith, Commissioner Chow reported that the Committee did not meet in December. They expect to work on clarifying submission requirements in the coming year, and have focused on developing stronger working relationships with the submitting teams, facilitating the opportunities for better projects.
    3. Community Arts, Education and Grants Committee—Maya Draisin, Chair
      1. In the absence of Vice President Draisin, Commissioner Calegari reported that the Committee held a great meeting, and was pleased to see the Cultural Centers much improved. All of the Centers’ executive directors attended the meeting for a roundtable discussion. The Committee found that leadership and board development were stronger, and the discussion identified specific instances where the Commission was helpful to the Centers, such as the recommendation that SOMArts work with CompassPoint. She also explained that the Committee discussed a plan for each member to become an “ambassador” for one of the Cultural Centers, to develop more continuity in the Committee’s relationship with the Centers.

        She reported that the Committee also approved Cultural Equity Grants of $100,000 to several wonderful nonprofit organizations, and that the Committee was deeply moved by wonderful presentations from grantees.

      2. Ms. Nemzoff and Ms. Takayama presented an overview of the Community Arts and Education Program, beginning with a reference to the celebration in 2008 of the fortieth anniversary of the Neighborhood Arts Program, which grew into the Community Arts and Education Program (“CAE”). Ms. Nemzoff explained that CAE encompasses several projects, including Art in Storefronts, WritersCorps, Arts Education, the Cultural Centers, the Deep Roots podcast and the City Hall Docent program.

        Ms. Nemzoff discussed Art in Storefronts, explaining that artists are transforming communities, inspiring response from neighbors and passersby; she noted that one project in the Mission, Ms. Teriosa, has a Yelp page. Arts Commission staff is working with the Mayor’s Office of Economic and Workforce Development to expand the project into Chinatown in April.

        Next, Ms. Nemzoff reported that WritersCorps is entering its sixteenth year. She said that federal stimulus funds allowed the program to bring the teaching staff back up to seven. She showed samples of the award-winning publications, and announced the upcoming museum reading series, taking place this spring at the Museum of the African Diaspora, the Contemporary Jewish Museum, Zeum and Yerba Buena Center for the Arts.

        Ms. Nemzoff discussed the Arts Education program, including its partnerships with the San Francisco Board of Education and the Arts Providers Alliance in writing the Arts Education Master Plan. She discussed Where Art Lives, a collaboration with the Department of Public Works (“DPW”). It includes a curriculum incorporating California State Content Standards, intended to curb tagging and graffiti vandalism, which has an enormous impact on the City’s budget. She mentioned Cameron Moberg, hired as the program’s first teaching artist, and played a video clip of one of his lessons. Noting that the program is also an opportunity to hire and train working artists, Ms. Nemzoff added that she expects to hire two more teaching artists in the spring. She described the StreetSmARTS program, also a collaboration with DPW, which pairs artists with property owners to create murals on walls at risk of graffiti.

        Ms. Nemzoff reported that CAE staff is evaluating the City Hall curriculum and working to bring younger volunteer docents to support that program.

        Ms. Nemzoff discussed the legislatively-created Cultural Centers as important venues for emerging and mid-career artists. She explained that the City is the owner of the properties (African American Arts and Culture Complex (“AAACC”), Bayview Opera House (“BVOH”, SOMArts and Mission Cultural Center for Latino Arts (“MCCLA”), and the Arts Commission serves as landlord to the nonprofit organizations that are the tenants. She said that the four buildings are worth tens of millions of dollars, although the agency has only $78,000 this year to maintain them. She explained that they all need upgrades to their HVAC systems, upgrades for compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act (“ADA”), and roof repairs. She noted that AAACC recently completed ADA upgrades, and that BVOH, originally built in 1883, had received funding over the past three years for critical renovations. She said that exterior landscaping is expected to be completed by the end of the summer, with a grand opening of the completely renovated structure set for early 2011.

        Ms. Nemzoff and Ms. Takayama described the Deep Roots podcasts, and played a brief clip. The latest podcast focuses on the Harvey Milk bust in City Hall. Ms. Nemzoff said that the program, created over forty years ago, tries to stay true to its roots while evolving in response to current needs.

        President Johnston was heartened by the report of progress in the program, noting that he had served on the Community Arts, Education and Grants Committee. He praised Ms. Nemzoff and staff for their tremendous work on the program.

        Commissioner Calegari asked for recommendations on the “top three” events coming up at the Centers. Ms. Nemzoff replied that staff and Cultural Center staff were working on ways for the Centers to have more direct contact with the Commissioners, and she promised to make sure Commissioners know about important events at the Centers.

        Commissioner García-Nakata thought the idea of ambassadors was interesting, but cautioned that the role’s expectations must be clearly set forth. Ms. Nemzoff thought that perhaps “ambassador” was not quite the right word, and that the role might be more like the “lead read” in a panel. They agreed that further discussion was needed.

        Jennie Rodriguez, MCCLA Director, addressed the Commission on three main points regarding the Centers. First, she said that it was important to remember that the buildings have been used for a long time. MCCLA, for example, was originally a furniture store, and was not designed to hold twenty computers and multimedia resources. She said that the space dictates the kinds of programs the Centers can do. God forbid one or two elevators break down, she said; that would take all of the $78,000 for the year’s maintenance.

        Second, she raised the importance of long-term leases, explaining that without them, it is difficult to seek funding for capital improvements. She described the current leases as practially year-to-year. She asked where the facilities were in the strategic planning process.

        Finally, on the question of ambassadors, she expressed a desire to have closer relationships with the Commissioners. As an example, she said that MCCLA offers a capoeira class for $5, and ballet for $8. She would like Commissioners to understand that the Centers offer the best deal in town, and to have a deeper understanding of what they do for the community.

        Commissioner García-Nakata thanked her, and noted that although there was a tendency to match a Center with a Commissioner of the same community, it might be interesting to mix it up.

        President Johnston, recalling his conversations with former Commissioner José Cuellar, explained that the Committee had tried holding some of its meetings at the Centers, with mixed results. With a strong group of Committee members, he said, it’s important for them to take time to become more familiar with the Centers.

        Commissioner García-Nakata observed that the long-term leases had been discussed off and on over thirty years, and she hoped to follow up the question. Ms. Nemzoff reported that the strategic plan included a goal to enter into long-term leases with the Centers as they are ready. President Johnston added that the City Attorney’s office was an important participant in this discussion, and that the Centers are moving at different paces. Commissioner García-Nakata said that the Centers were grateful for the funds they receive, but their needs are significant. President Johnston added that under the leadership of Ms. Nemzoff, standards are high.

    4. Street Artists Committee—Sherene Melania, Chair
      1. In the absence of Commissioner Melania, President Johnston reported that the Committee did not met in December, the prime holiday selling season.

        He presented the following motion.

      2. RESOLUTION NO. 0104-10-022: Motion to approve requests by former certificate-holders for priority issuance of certificate with waiver of re-screening of wares: Jodi Mullen, Khadijah McBride.
    5. Visual Arts Committee—Lorraine García-Nakata, Chair
      1. Commissioner García-Nakata reported that the Committee reviewed several projects, including Cayuga Playground, Tatubi Plaza, General Hospital, Laguna Honda Hospital and the San Francisco Airport, which she said was moving along well, with some details still being negotiated. She said that the report of accomplishments for 2009 was very impressive, and that the strategic plan will be an important guide for the next year with cuts in resources. She said that it will be important to have realistic expectations for what staff can actually accomplish. She emphasized that the strategic plan must be a working document, evolving and adapting to changes, guiding where cuts can be made if new initiatives are undertaken. She expressed confidence in the staff, and doesn’t want to wear them out.

        Commissioner Beltran noted that the Tatubi Plaza design specifies an innovative material, stained concrete. She explained that although it looks like mosaic tile, it is much less expensive to produce and is still quite beautiful. She cited this as an example of tough times bringing out creativity and innovation, and she praised Ms. Pontious’s management of costs in the project.

        Commissioner Chew found the Cayuga Playground a really interesting, if overlooked, project. He was pleased that the Department of Recreation and Parks is funding it, and noted the wholehearted support of the community for the artwork selected. He predicted that this project will have a high profile when it is completed. He added that he expects the Shanghai-San Francisco Sister City 30th aniversary to draw a lot of attention in the coming year. President Johnston said that the Committee would be discussing a monumental Buddha sculpture which the agency hopes to bring to the City as part of the celebration. Ms. Manton added that the artist intended for San Francisco to show the work, and that she would be meeting with the shipping company shortly.

  7. New Business
    There was no new business.
  8. Reports and Announcements
    Ms. Manton reported Mr. Cancel’s announcement of the Dynamic Adaptability Conference at the Herbst Theatre on January 28.

    President Johnston thanked everyone for their attention to the many reports at this meeting.

    There were no further reports or announcements.

  9. Public Comment
    There was no further public comment.
  10. Adjournment
    There being no further business, the meeting was adjourned at 5:00 p.m.

4/2/10 spr