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North St. Paul Arts and Culture Commission advances public-art projects; council approved penny press
Summary
At its April 1 meeting the North St. Paul City Arts and Culture Commission, meeting without a quorum, reviewed a set of public-art projects — including a council-approved penny-press purchase, a proposed 45th-parallel monument, utility-box photography and art-cart programming — and set next steps for design, artist calls and event liaisons.
The North St. Paul City Arts and Culture Commission met April 1 and, while lacking a quorum to take formal votes, reviewed a slate of public-art projects and event plans that the commission expects to advance in coming months.
Commissioners reported that the city council approved the commission’s requested expenditure for a penny press during a March 17 presentation; staff and commissioners will collect the approved artwork and send it to the vendor for production. Jordan Layman, noted in the meeting as the commission’s staff member, said the receipts and revenues from the penny press and other events flow into the city’s general fund and that staff would provide clarification on whether proceeds should be tracked separately or be used to offset the machine’s cost.
The meeting spotlighted a mural-subcommittee idea to mark the city’s position on the 45th parallel. Commissioner Sharon Clark Williams said the idea dates to her school days: “That is the exact story. I learned about that at John Glenn Junior High that we were right on the 45th parallel. And I’ve always wanted my city to have a marker to say, ‘Hey, look at us. We are so cool,’” and the group gave initial approval to pursue monument design and city coordination.
Commissioners discussed possible siting near Holloway, the water-tower park area, Casey Park and along the Gateway Trail, but deferred final placement until more members could participate. The commission also heard that the local VFW had expressed interest in contributing toward a mural or monument and asked staff to follow up.
A utility-box art project will take a photographic approach at Silver Lake; staff will prepare a call for artists once the project language and approvals are complete. The art cart program continues with Kid Create contracted for events; the commission confirmed staffing for two events (May 22 and July 9). The group also discussed moving a proposed spoken-word program to the Autumn Arts Festival on Sept. 13 so it can be staged as a performance rather than a wandering big-truck-night activity. Commissioners said they will coordinate liaisons to firm up logistics and outreach, including potential connections with North High students.
Because the commission lacked a quorum, none of the items were formally voted on at the meeting; commissioners said they expect to return items for formal action once a quorum is present. Staff noted budget proposals are due in early July and offered to circulate additional budget tracking and revenue clarifications to the commission ahead of final decisions.
The commission adjourned after covering event planning, artist outreach and next-step staff coordination. The next meeting will be used to finalize language for artist calls, monument design options and any items that require formal approval.
