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Council clears concept design and artist agreement for Imagination Center public art after community outreach
Summary
The finance committee approved the concept design and agreement with artist Nate Page for a public-art installation at the Imagination Center in Rindle Park after staff described outreach that included about 1,200 survey responses and student engagement; staff said the artist produced revised options after community concerns about a roadway motif.
The Finance Committee voted unanimously March 16 to approve the initial concept design and authorize the city to enter an agreement with artist Nate Page to create a site-specific public-art feature at the Imagination Center at Rindle Park.
Karen, the project staffer, said outreach for the project yielded about 1,200 community survey responses and included direct engagement with Sanberg Elementary students at the alder's request. Staff recounted that while support for Nate Page was broad, many community members and students found an initial roadway motif in the winning design troubling following a recent traffic fatality; staff and the artist produced two revised options that will be reviewed by the Municipal Art Commission (MAC) before the resolution proceeds to council.
Why it matters: staff framed the process as unusually participatory for the city's public-art work and said centering students' input was an intentional part of the project's outreach. Alder Madison praised the outreach and urged colleagues to read the children's comments embedded in the meeting materials.
Committee action: with the MAC review and public debrief steps identified, the committee approved the item by unanimous voice vote.
What's next: staff will present the revised options to the MAC later this week and attach the selected option to the resolution when it goes to council.
