MEETING OF THE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE
OF THE ARTS COMMISSION

Tuesday, October 29, 2019
12:30 p.m.
401 Van Ness Avenue, Room 125

Minutes
 

President Ordeñana called the meeting to order at 12:38 p.m.

1. Roll Call
   Commissioners Present
   Roberto Ordeñana, President
   Kimberlee Stryker, Vice President
   JD Beltran
   Charles Collins
   Mary Jung
    
   Commissioners Absent
   None
    
2. General Public Comment
   There was no public comment.
    
3. Director’s Report
   Mr. DeCaigny began with an update on Human Resources matters: Rebekah Krell has returned as Interim Deputy Director of Finance and Administration, and Kate Patterson recently left the Director of Communications position at the Arts Commission for a similar position at the Library. He reported progress on filling a few other vacant positions in the agency.
    
   Mr. DeCaigny announced events connected with the opening of the San Francisco Airport Hyatt Hotel, including an event celebrating the artists whose work is installed there on Saturday, November 2.
    
   Mr. DeCaigny reported that, as in prior years, a survey on his performance will be distributed to Commissioners and staff, and the feedback aggregated, in preparation for his review in closed session by this Committee at its next meeting.
    
   Finally, he distributed the draft calendar of Commission and Committee meetings for 2020. The Committee discussed it, proposing an occasional meeting of the Community Investments Committee at one of the Cultural Centers, and requesting the addition of the annual Community Convening to the calendar.
    
   There was no public comment.
    
4. San Francisco Symphony
   Mr. DeCaigny noted that Public Art Trust and Special Projects Director Jill Manton was present to give further information if needed. He explained that the following motions were intended to align the fiscal calendars of the Arts Commission and the San Francisco Symphony, in the longstanding financial relationship between the two organizations as enshrined in the City Charter. The first motion rescinds the prior action on this agreement, and the second clarifies the relevant dates and updates the amount of the ad valorem tax as estimated by the Controller.
    
   There was no public comment and the motions were unanimously approved as follows.
    
   Motion to rescind Resolution No. 0805-19-208, which authorized the Director of Cultural Affairs to enter into an agreement with the San Francisco Symphony to produce twelve Symphony concerts in each of fiscal years 2019-2020 and 2020-2021, for a total of 24 concerts, one of which each year is to be free to the public and held in a publicly accessible venue, commencing August 1, 2019 and concluding by August 31, 2021, for an amount equal to the Controller’s calculation of the ad valorem tax for FY 2019-2020 and FY 2020-2021, currently estimated to be $6,658,946.
    
   Motion, pursuant to Charter Section 16.106(1), to authorize the Director of Cultural Affairs to enter into an agreement with the San Francisco Symphony for 24 concerts that will retroactively apply to twelve concerts produced in the Symphony’s 2018-2019 season and to twelve concerts to be produced in the Symphony’s 2019-2020 season, with one concert each season free to the public and held in a publicly accessible venue, for an amount equal to the amount allocated in the applicable annual Budget and Appropriation Ordinance currently established to be $3,478,883 for the City’s fiscal year ending June 30, 2020 and estimated to be $3,635,573 for the City’s fiscal year ending June 30, 2021, for a combined estimate of $7,114,456.
    
5. Public Artwork Trust Report
   Mr. DeCaigny briefly explained how the Public Artwork Trust operates, under Planning Code Section 429, allowing developers to contribute their required one percent for public art to the Trust in lieu of placing artwork onsite. Trust funds can be used for other arts uses, including grants to arts organizations or for artworks not immediately on the development site.
    
   Ms. Manton presented an overview of projects completed with Trust funds, including a light sculpture by Joseph Kosuth installed on the Bill Graham Civic Auditorium, the temporary installation of Zak Ové's Invisible Man and the Masque of Blackness in the Civic Center Plaza and, most recently, the temporary slide projection installation Reclaiming Space: Projected Portraits of the American Indian Community as part of the Commission's American Indian Initiative, The Continuous Thread.
    
   The Committee had an extended discussion about these and potential future projects, the difference between temporary and permanent projects, the potential for projects to travel or to be lent, policies regarding the ownership rights of the artist and other matters. The Committee also discussed the challenges of balancing the needs and wishes of developers with the resources involved in responsibly administering the funds and curating the artwork.
    
   The Committee congratulated Ms. Manton on her work in the creation of the legislation, in advocating for the program with developers and other City departments and in bringing projects to fruition. She, in turn, thanked Commissioner Beltran for her collaboration developing the legislation when she served as Interim Director of Cultural Affairs. Ms. Manton added that she has been contacted by other jurisdictions interested in establishing programs in their own cities.
    
   The Committee discussed how the Trust affects various neighborhoods with disparate amounts of development, in San Francisco, and the implications for racial and geographic equity.
    
   Commissioners were enthusiastic about the potential for artwork generated by the development of Treasure Island, which they hope will be an art destination. They also discussed possible ways to generate more interest in and awareness of the Trust and its role in creative placemaking.
    
   Ms. Manton turned to a discussion of several potential future changes to the legislation, including adjustments to the discount of a donation to the Trust versus installation of artwork onsite; ensuring that the Trust contribution is calculated on the final construction cost, and that materials are properly charged to the construction budget; clarifying the public process so that it also acknowledges the voluntary nature of the developer's participation; addressing perceived or actual conflicts of interest by developers; and other questions.
    
   Mr. DeCaigny explained that these ideas are all quite preliminary, and will need to be discussed with other City partners, City Hall and other stakeholders. He added that some of these items could be best addressed in Arts Commission policy rather than as legislative amendments.
    
   There was no public comment.
    
6. New Business and Announcements
   Commissioner Beltran congratulated Commissioner Collins on receiving the Silver Spur award in recognition of his many accomplishments. His wife and his father have also received the award in previous years.
    
   There was no public comment.
    
7. Adjournment
   There being no further business, the meeting was adjourned at 2:01 p.m.
    

posted 11/16/19, 6:30 p.m. spr
approved 12/4/19


 

Language Accessibility

Translated written materials and interpretation services are available to you at no cost. For assistance, please notify Commission Secretary Sharon Page Ritchie, 415-252-2256, sharon.page_ritchie@sfgov.org.

我們將為閣下提供免費的書面翻譯資料和口譯服務。如需協助，Commission Secretary Sharon Page Ritchie, 415-252-2256, sharon.page_ritchie@sfgov.org.

Materiales traducidos y servicios de interpretación están disponibles para usted de manera gratuita. Para asistencia, notifique a Commission Secretary Sharon Page Ritchie, 415-252-2256, sharon.page_ritchie@sfgov.org.