Arts Council of Alachua County

Meeting #:

Date:

Monday, June 03, 2024

Time:

5:30 P.m. - 6:30 P.m.

Location:

County Administration Building - Grace Knight Conference Room

12 SE 1 Street, 2nd Floor, Gainesville, FL 32601

---

1.

Call to Order

The meeting was called to order at 5:30 p.m.

Members Present:  Chelsea Carnes, Queenchiku Ngozi, David Ruiz, Stephanie Silberman (Chair), Carol Velasques Richardson  and Amy Koester (Vice Chair)

Members Absent:  Lucia Curta and Christine Johnson 

2.

Election of Chair and Vice Chair

Queenchiku Ngozi made a motion for Stephanie Silberman to serve as Chair; David Ruiz second; unanimous approval; motion carried.

Carol Velasques Richardson made a motion for Amy Koester to serve as Vice Chair; David Ruiz second; unanimous approval; motion carried.

3.

Approval of the Agenda

David Ruiz made a motion to approve the agenda as presented; Carol Velasques Richardson second; unanimous approval; motion carried.

4.

Approval of Minutes

David Ruiz made a motion to approve the April 12, 2024 minutes as presented; Chelsea Carnes second; unanimous approval; motion carried.

5.

Art Tag Grant Application Review

Thanks to County Grants Writer, Ashley Baird, we were awarded a $30,000 grant from the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) to re-grant through our Art Tag Grant program.  Including the $10,000 contribution from Visit Gainesville, Alachua County, FL, and $4,000 from Art Tag sales, we can award a record $44,000.  

The Council reviewed the revised application, which includes NEA required language.  The application will be updated and posted to our website by the end of the week so applications can be received through the July 31 deadline.  Staff will advertise the grants on the County's social media sites, request an announcement during an upcoming Board meeting, issue a press release, share on our email distribution list, contact all cities and request they widely share and look into an add in the Main Street Daily News.

Carol Velasques Richardson made a motion that the maximum grant award for artists and arts group be $3,000 and $5,000 for cities; David Ruiz second; unanimous approval; motion carried.

6.

Strategic Plan Update

The Council reviewed the Strategic Plan and recommended updating the document layout/formatting as well as some language and the budget.  An updated version is planned to be presented at our next meeting.

7.

3rd Annual Artists Conference Debrief

The Council discussed the 3rd Annual Artists Conference including a review of evaluations received.  They suggested increasing our marketing efforts and emailing a brief survey to those registered.  

8.

Call-to-Artist Update

8.1

Animal Shelter

A Call to Artists will be developed in the coming months, assuming the County and UF come to agreement on the property lease.

8.2

Armory

Renovations to the old Armory will commence soon, as this will be the location for the County's Emergency Operations Center.  A Call to Artists, in the amount of $75,060 will be developed once the desired art (i.e. sculpture, mural, stained glass, etc.) is identified.

8.3

Court Complex

Construction of the new Court Complex is anticipated to start by the end of this calendar year.  A Call to Artists, in the amount of $100,000 will be developed once the desired art (i.e. sculpture, mural, stained glass, etc.) is identified.

8.4

EPD Conservation Lands Building

A Call to Artists, in the amount of $20,000 will be developed once the desired art (i.e. sculpture, mural, stained glass, etc.) is identified.

8.5

Fire Station 21 and 80 Bronze Sculptures

The Fire Station 80 sculpture is expected to be delivered at any time, and the Fire Station 21 sculpture is expected at the end of this calendar year.

8.6

Fire Training

A Call to Artists, in the amount of $8,000 has been developed for a mural on the exterior west wall of the building.  Fire staff are reviewing it now and staff will work with Procurement to advertise it.  The Arts Council and Karem Scott-Kotb will serve as the evaluation committee.  

8.7

Parking Garage

A Call to Artists, in the amount of $100,000 will be developed once the desired art (i.e. sculpture, mural, stained glass, etc.) is identified.

8.8

Warehouse

A Call to Artists will be developed once the warehouse is purchased and the desired art (i.e. sculpture, mural, stained glass, etc.) is identified.

9.

Public Comment

None

10.

Adjournment

The meeting was adjourned at 6:30 p.m.