Surprise arts commission cites growth, $14,000 state grant and prioritizes mural replacements and traffic-cabinet projects

The Surprise Arts & Cultural Advisory Commission reviewed its fiscal year 2025 programs and public-art priorities on Sept. 19, hearing that the city’s arts activity and attendance rose substantially, staff secured a $14,000 grant from the Arizona Commission on the Arts and that the public-art fund balance available for FY27 planning is roughly $770,000.

Ally, a staff member in the Arts & Culture Division, opened the presentation by announcing, “We received a $14,000 grant from the Arizona Commission on the Arts.” She said the funds will be used for “professional development programs with our arts organizations.”

The staff annual report summarized program growth and operational highlights. “We had a 50% increase in the number of events and a 20% increase in attendance,” Ally said, and described partnerships with the library, seven local teaching artists who ran 28 summer workshops and the expansion of evening/weekend programming such as the monthly Live at Asante series.

Why it matters: commissioners will present FY27 public-art requests to city council in November, and the fund balance and project priorities determined now will shape what staff asks for in the next budget cycle.

Key program and funding details reported by staff: - Grant funding: $14,000 from the Arizona Commission on the Arts to support professional development for local arts organizations (announced at 00:00:41). - Grants awarded: $51,000 in city grant awards to 14 recipients in FY25 (reported at 00:19:58). - Estimated economic impact: staff ran award activity through an Americans for the Arts economic-impact calculator and reported an estimated $628,000 in economic activity tied to funded programs (reported at 00:19:58). - Reach: staff reported programs served about 30,000 people in the year, including about 22,000 youth (reported at 00:19:58). - Staffing and capacity: the division added two positions for the Art in Public Places program and completed a 10‑year strategic-plan goal by conducting a cultural-facility study (reported at 00:27:28). - Fund balance: staff said the public-art fund is projected at approximately $770,000 for FY27 planning; prior projections in the plan had been higher and last-year CIP approvals for maintenance reduced the pool available for new art (reported at 00:35:13).

Public-art projects under review Staff walked commissioners through approved projects that had not yet started, and a slate of proposed FY27 projects. Approved-but-not-started projects listed by staff included additional traffic cabinets (public utility box art), a Countryside (rec-center) wall project, and a planned artist-in-residence program for Stig Macomb Park (discussed at 00:41:23). Proposed projects for future budget requests included Barramonte Park, Asante-area traffic-cabinet work, a city-center art corridor, original town-site projects and mural replacements.

On project budgeting: the staff packet showed a previous planning total near $960,000 for a larger set of projects; commissioners and staff discussed trimming or phasing projects. For example, staff noted an approved Countryside rec-center project budget of $200,000 in the packet but said a smaller park-level installation could be delivered for about $75,000 if the commission preferred a lower-cost option (discussed at 00:48:49 and 01:02:43).

Commission guidance and next steps Commissioners generally agreed on several priorities and gave staff direction rather than taking formal binding votes on each project: - Continue the traffic-cabinet program (the city will reach roughly 30 cabinets citywide if the work proceeds) because it is low-cost and highly visible. - Prioritize mural replacements and consider using some city-center funding for sites in the original town site (the commission discussed moving city-center focus/money toward original-town-site projects during the conversation). - Keep the Countryside rec-center project and the artist-residency approach for Stig Macomb Park as high-impact, community-engagement investments.

Staff was asked to return to the commission in the November cycle with refined project descriptions, measured-site cost estimates (staff noted mural painting estimates in the packet and recommended measuring large walls to calculate per-square-foot costs) and recommended budget requests to present to city council for FY27.

Administrative actions The commission voted to approve the July 30, 2025 meeting minutes by motion and second; the clerk recorded the vote as "aye" and the minutes were approved. Commissioners later moved, seconded and voted to adjourn the meeting.

Context and background The Arts & Culture Division sits within the newly renamed Sports, Entertainment and Culture department; the division continues to oversee public art, grants and partnerships. Staff emphasized capacity-building work with local organizations (training and one-on-one technical assistance) and noted that regular, small-dollar investments—traffic-cabinet art, mural upkeep and neighborhood-scaled installations—can produce visible benefits and help grow the local creative economy.

What staff will bring back Staff will present refined FY27 project proposals with site measurements and cost estimates, options to reallocate city-center funds to original-town-site work, and a recommended prioritized list for the council budget submission in November.