Santa Rosa arts committee reviews strategic-plan goals, proposes Arts Roundtable for outreach

The Art and Public Places Committee reviewed progress on the first three goals of its four-year strategic plan — representation and inclusion, neighborhood public-art access, and funding/maintenance — and discussed new outreach options including an informal Arts Roundtable to broaden participation.

Meredith (staff member) presented accomplishments and remaining action items in the plan and said staff intend to issue a request for proposals to update the master plan in the next fiscal year. "We'll need to go to RFP to have someone assist with the master plan revision," Meredith said, adding that staff will gather committee feedback now to inform any RFP.

Why it matters: the strategic plan guides the public-art program’s priorities across neighborhoods, funding and partnerships. Committee members highlighted outreach, partnerships with businesses, maintenance funding and inclusive programming beyond visual art as priorities to carry into the next work plan.

What the committee heard and recommended

- Expand beyond visual art: Members urged the program to treat performing, sound and mobile artworks as public art and to integrate those forms into programming. Meredith noted recent efforts around popup theater and a sketchbook/coloring-book project and said the website language has been updated to be more inclusive.

- Arts Roundtable vs. advisory board: Staff proposed an informal Arts Roundtable — a nondecision-making, mobile-format series of neighborhood meetings — rather than a formal advisory board subject to Brown Act requirements. Committee members supported the roundtable as a way to reach residents who cannot attend daytime commission meetings and to gather neighborhood-specific feedback. Meredith said the roundtable would allow staff to "go to them" and collect two-way feedback.

- Diversity, equity and inclusion: Committee members emphasized continuing training and explicit criteria for diversity and inclusion in project selection. Meredith said a public-art audit and selection process already capture some diversity metrics (e.g., local/ nonlocal artist, neighborhood concentration) and that staff will bring further recommendations on specific criteria.

- Neighborhood infusion and mapping: Meredith reported that an art-audit map is being finalized in GIS to show concentrations of permanent public art; current data indicate most permanent works remain centralized downtown and along the Prince Memorial Greenway. Committee members urged prioritizing underserved neighborhoods (including Roseland and other districts) for future grant and placement opportunities.

- Funding and business partnerships: Staff said they are working with the business community — including the chamber and Downtown Association (DAO) — on outreach for the Art Walk and will produce an "art merchandising" guide to help small businesses leverage arts programming. The committee discussed facade-improvement grants and ARPA-funded mural work as models for neighborhood engagement and suggested more small grants for artists.

- Emergency planning: Staff noted internal discussions about an emergency role for the arts program (artist storage, emergency exhibitions or community art responses) and recommended preplanning for rapid response in disasters.

Public comment and committee next steps

Several members and public commenters supported the Arts Roundtable. Council chair and community members expressed interest in staff returning with a detailed work plan and timeline; Meredith said she would present a work plan to the committee at a subsequent meeting and that the master-plan RFP will be timed to incorporate committee feedback.

Ending

The committee endorsed continuing outreach and drafting a work plan informed by the meeting discussion; staff will return with specific proposals for an Arts Roundtable format, possible grant programs, and a timeline for the master-plan update.