Pleasanton Civic Arts Commission recommends Don Lewis completion, QR-code plaques and volunteer stewardship as 2026–27 priorities

The Pleasanton Civic Arts Commission voted unanimously on April 6, 2026, to recommend four work-plan priorities for fiscal year 2026–27, including completion of the Don Lewis public-art installation, expanded plaques and interpretation with QR-code exploration, a volunteer-based beautification and stewardship program, and continued civic-arts outreach and engagement. A motion to recommend those priorities to the City Council passed on a roll-call voice vote.

Staff told the commission that the Don Lewis project is in fabrication and that most Harrington donor funds committed to public art are planned for that work; staff also said they had not seen a written five-year spending deadline and would follow up with donors if needed. Rachel (staff) reported the city's public-art maintenance budget was cut by $40,000 during the budget process, which prompted discussion of a volunteer stewardship program to supplement maintenance resources.

Commissioners discussed merging the public-art plaque inventory with interpretation and accessibility goals and exploring QR codes so a person standing at a piece of art could scan an on-site code to reach written interpretation or short audio/video clips. One commissioner noted that interpretive texts already exist on the Pleasanton Cultural Arts Council website and advocated linking that content to city pages or QR codes to improve in-person access.

The motion that passed directs staff to draft recommended work-plan language that keeps the Don Lewis project and plaque work active until complete; expands the plaque initiative to include interpretation, accessibility and QR-code exploration; advances a public-art beautification and stewardship program (volunteer-based); and continues civic-arts outreach and community engagement. Commissioners requested that staff return with a polished work-plan document and suggested timelines or benchmarks where appropriate.

Also during the meeting commissioners discussed possible ad hoc subcommittees to carry out targeted tasks (limited to three commissioners per ad hoc), including a Don Lewis exhibition proposal, public-art plaque/QR-code work, and a beautification/volunteer stewardship group. The commission confirmed the public-art selection (pass) committee assignments separately and asked staff to return refined ad-hoc proposals with specific scopes and timelines.

The commission's recommendation will be forwarded to staff for wording and then included in materials for the City Council's budget process; staff will report back when more detail or funding is available.