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Merced arts commission previews winter concert series, RFPs and utility‑box plan
Summary
The Merced Arts & Culture Advisory Commission reviewed a slate of approved public‑art projects, confirmed RFP timelines for December–January, discussed deaccessioning and documentation of utility‑box murals, and asked staff to return with recommendations on prioritizing boxes and using the roughly $13,500 remaining in the arts budget.
The Merced Arts & Culture Advisory Commission on Tuesday heard an information report outlining a series of public‑art projects, upcoming requests for proposals and a plan to document and refresh painted utility boxes across the city.
Jennifer Flackman, the city’s public information officer and senior management analyst, presented the report and said the City of Merced Brown Bag Concert Series — originally planned for this week — was postponed because of rain and rescheduled for Dec. 11, with artist Brian Cade slated to play from about 6:30 to 8 p.m. She listed additional shows on Dec. 18, Jan. 15 and Feb. 19 and said staff would promote the series with the Downtown Partnership and local restaurants; she added the square would remain a no‑alcohol zone.
The report also outlined two concurrent RFP schedules. An “upcycle” trash‑art project for Ference Park and a Bob Hart Square medallion project are expected to be released together, with applications opening on Dec. 4 and a submission deadline of Jan. 30; the commission will review finalists at its March meeting and staff anticipates forwarding recommendations to the City Council in April. “We’re finishing up the flyers so we can start pushing that out on social media,” Flackman said.
Flackman told commissioners the arts fund has roughly $13,500 remaining. Two planned pieces — a Ference Park sculpture and the Bob Hart Square medallion — will require engineering to construct pedestals or attachment mechanisms. She said the city intends to handle the engineering and installation work so that artists are not required to do that labor; no formal engineering quotes were provided at the meeting.
The commission also discussed a utility‑box refresh project covering locations identified in a 2021 list. Flackman said the city will deaccession existing painted panels by archiving them on Engage Merced, and that removing or prepping boxes is labor intensive because many have graffiti protective coatings. Commissioners raised concerns about preserving notable murals; Colton Dennis, vice chair, asked whether boxes with widely publicized designs could be held longer to accommodate requests from artists. Flackman said staff would inspect box conditions and return with recommendations to the commission in a future meeting.
Dennis requested a formal future‑agenda item to prioritize which utility boxes to keep, how to sequence replacements and whether a subcommittee should make funding recommendations for the remaining balance. “I’d like to put in the future agenda a discussion on utility boxes, maybe making a priority of which ones get deassessed,” Dennis said.
Commissioners also discussed the city’s application for a state cultural‑district designation, reporting that Merced was among 20 semifinalists being considered for 10 designations by the California Arts Council after a recent site visit.
Before adjourning, the commission handled brief housekeeping: a member noted several typos in the materials, which Flackman said she would correct. A motion to adjourn by Commissioner Camarda, seconded by Vice Chair Colton Dennis, passed by unanimous voice vote, and the meeting was closed.
The report was informational; no Council action was requested at this meeting.
