Salinas Public Arts Commission elects chair, vice chair; approves minutes and forms annual-plan subcommittee

The City of Salinas Public Arts Commission elected Commissioner Cortez as chair and Commissioner Jesus Morales as vice chair at its June 16, 2025 meeting, approved the minutes from May 20, 2024 and voted to form a three-member subcommittee to develop the fiscal year 2026–27 public art annual plan.

The commission took the votes by roll call. The motion to elect Jesus Morales as vice chair passed with roll-call votes recorded as Yes: Commissioner Garcia; Yes: Commissioner Morales; Yes: Commissioner Cortez; Yes: Commissioner Banda; Yes: Commissioner Abayana; Yes: Commissioner Gonzales. Commissioner Cortez was later elected chair by roll call with the recorded votes Yes: Garcia; Yes: Morales; Yes: Cortez; Yes: Gonzales; motion passed.

Commissioners also moved to approve the minutes of the May 20, 2024 meeting; the roll call vote recorded Commissioners Garcia, Morales, Cortez and Gonzales voting yes and the motion passed. The commission then voted to establish a public art annual plan subcommittee for fiscal year 2026–27 consisting of Commissioners Gonzales, Morales and Cortez; the motion passed by roll call.

The subcommittee was established under the commission’s responsibility to prepare an annual public art plan, a requirement the commission’s director noted was created when the City Council adopted the public art ordinance in May 2017. The plan is funded through the municipal art fund, which the director described as a 1% allocation on certain eligible city construction projects; the subcommittee will work with staff and report back with recommendations to the full commission and the City Council. The director said the commission must submit the annual plan to the City Council no later than April 1 of the applicable year.

Commissioners also discussed meeting frequency and member participation. One commissioner said low attendance over the prior two years had limited the commission’s ability to advance projects; another urged broader community recruitment to fill vacancies and strengthen quorum reliability.

The motions recorded in this meeting are procedural: officer elections, approval of minutes and formation of the subcommittee. The subcommittee is tasked with drafting recommendations on funding sources, budgets and proposed projects to include in the annual plan for consideration by the full commission and for eventual submission to City Council.