AIPP staff outlines phased rewrite, ordinance and outreach for Percent-for-Art overhaul

Art in Public Places program staff briefed the commission on June 16 about an ongoing policy rewrite and implementation plan that responds to a council resolution published in March. Jaime Castillo described the work as a multi-phase effort to revise city ordinance language, update guidelines and improve communications and resource support for artists.

Castillo told commissioners the work is structured in phases: an initial program assessment (phase 1) that reviewed historical data and benchmarked 12 peer cities; a phase 2 engagement and cross-departmental working group to draft redlines and test operational feasibility; and a planned phase 3 that will present an ordinance update to council, update guidelines and launch revised calls. “We are approaching this in phases,” Castillo said while summarizing accomplishments to date.

Key themes from staff’s assessment include local-artist participation, lack of understanding of how the Percent-for-Art program works, and needs for artist support around permitting, storage and contract realities. Staff outlined policy recommendations including clarifying Percent-for-Art requirements in the ordinance, encouraging private-development participation (P3), permitting greater pooling of unused funds (where legally allowed) for maintenance or programming, clarifying maintenance and repair responsibilities, and expanding fee-waiver guidance.

Programmatic recommendations include offering curatorial services on larger projects, clearer application eligibility guidance (example budgets and experience levels), and targeted mentorship and marketing to make calls more accessible to local and historically under-resourced artists. Castillo said staff intends to present an ordinance update to council in September and to bring revised policies and guidelines back to the AIPP panel and the commission for review prior to implementation.

Commissioners asked about the cross-departmental working group’s membership and whether departments such as Development Services (DSD) and capital delivery would be engaged to clarify permit requirements and fee waivers. Castillo said staff is working with DSD on a decision tree to identify when permits are required, which permits can have fee waivers, and where artists should be directed for support.

Ending: Staff said the next steps are to circulate first-draft redlines for feedback, complete legal review, and return to the commission and council with a final ordinance and guideline updates. Implementation items such as contract exhibit clarifications, sample contracts and artist resources will follow the ordinance change.