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HomeMy WebLinkAboutItem 8.2 - 1613 Dog Park Public Art Deaccession Page 1 of 3 STAFF REPORT CITY COUNCIL DATE: October 17, 2017 TO: Honorable Mayor and City Councilmembers FROM: Christopher L. Foss, City Manager SUBJECT: Dog Park Public Art Deaccession Prepared by: Tegan McLane, Cultural Arts & Heritage Manager EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: The City Council is being asked to approve the deaccession of Michele Alacantra's Animal Series Sculptures at Dougherty Hills Dog Park. STAFF RECOMMENDATION: Approve the deaccession of Michele Alacantra's Animal Series Sculptures at D ougherty Hills Dog Park. Provide Staff direction if the City Council wishes to consider commissioning new artwork for the Dougherty Hills Dog Park. FINANCIAL IMPACT: Cost to deaccession the piece is dependent upon the price at which the artist or someone else chooses to purchase the art, and if the buyer pays the cost of the de - installation and transport. The worst case scenario is if there are no buyers, the City would need to pay to de-install and dispose of the sculptures. DESCRIPTION: The public art piece at Dougherty Hills Dog Park, Animal Series by Michele Alacantra, was installed in 2007, at a cost of $20,000. The City contributed $5,000 and $15,000 was privately funded by the Dublin Fine Arts Foundation. Shortly after the installation, the City received two complaints about injuries to children and animals. The artist was requested to and did make minor modifications, including clipping the wire whiskers on the cats, rounding the pointy ends of dog tails, sanding sharp edges and repairing a bent ear, which had been made from a fan blade. In spring 2015, the City of Dublin engaged a public art conservator to evaluate the public art collection, in preparation for making repairs and deferred maintenance to the entire collection. Animal Series was identified as being in poor condition. The conservator cited rust and broken pieces that could be a safety hazard. (Attachment 1) Page 2 of 3 As prescribed by the artist contract, Staff approached the artist in July 2015 and gave her first right of refusal to make the repairs. Ms. Alacantra declined to make the repairs herself, so Staff included the repairs to the dog park art as one of the jobs in its Request for Proposals (RFP) to art conservators. SF Art Conservation, the City’s selected firm to provide repairs and maintenance on the entire collection, said that because the work needed was so extensive the repairs cannot be done on site. There would also be additional costs to de -install the artwork, transport the artwork to their shop and then re-install the artwork. SF Art Conservation also recommended landscape improvements would need to be made if the City plans to keep the piece in its current location. Staff believes that the total cost for repairs, de -installation and reinstallation and landscape improvements would total $35,000-$40,000, which exceeds the value of the piece. The piece would also require significant ongoing maintenance, due to the nature of the materials, as "found metal" objects are susceptible to decay, and this piece is regularly exposed to the high mineral content recycled water, used for irrigation in this park, and to dog urine. Staff is recommending the deaccessioning of the piece. This would be the City of Dublin’s first deaccessioned public art. The Public Art Master Plan requires that the Heritage and Cultural Arts Commission make a recommendation to the City Council regarding the deaccession of public art in the collection, and specifies conditions under which deaccessioning can be considered. Only City Council can approve the deaccession of an art piece. A piece must meet at least one of the conditions for deaccession. This piece meets four of the conditions. They are: The condition or security of the artwork cannot be reasonably guaranteed; The artwork requires excessive maintenance or has faults of design or workmanship and repair or remedy is impractical or unfeasible; The artwork has been damaged and repair is impractical or unfeasible; The artwork’s physical or structural condition poses a threat to public safety. The Heritage and Cultural Arts Commission initially considered this matter at its August 10, 2017 meeting, but voted to table the decision until its September 14 meeting, in order to hear remarks from fellow absent Commissioner Georgean VonHeeder -Leopold, who was active with the Dublin Fine Arts Foundation at the time this piece was commissioned. At the September 14, 2017 Heritage and Cultural Arts Commission meeting, the Commission voted (6-1, with Cm. VonHeeder-Leopold opposed) to recommend that the City Council approve deaccession of Michele Alacantra’s Animal Series artwork, Page 3 of 3 provided that the City replace it with a sustainable piece that is appropriate to the site in terms of its placement and concept. The Commissioners discussed their desire to have appropriate artwork at the dog park. Commissioner VonHeeder-Leopold stated that she opposed because she believes the City is responsible for maintenance to keep artwork in good repair, and therefore should restore the originally installed artwork. If City Council chooses to deaccession the piece, the Public Art Master Plan dictates that the artist shall have first right of refusal to purchase the piece at its fair market value. NOTICING REQUIREMENTS/PUBLIC OUTREACH: Public Notice was provided to Dougherty Hills Dog Park users via signage at the park, and to neighbors via postcard to homes within 300 feet. ATTACHMENTS: 1. Dog Park Public Art Deaccession PowerPoint Dog Park Public Ar t Deaccession October 3,2017 Animal Series,by Michele Alacantra •Installed 2007. Cost $20K (City paid $5K, Dublin Fine Ar ts Foundation paid $15K) •Shor tly after install, in response to two complaints about injuries, the Ar tist made minor modifications/repairs to: cat whiskers, dog tails, sharp edg es, fan-blade ear In 2015, conser va tor identified fur ther broken pieces, r ust and labeled piece in poor condition and safety risk. •Ar tist has declined to make fur ther repairs. Considerations •Cur rent estimate for de-install, repair, re-install and landscape improve ments is $35-$40K. •“Found metal” objects mean continued decay is expected, and substantial annual maintenance costs g oing forward. •Exposure to recycled water and dog urine accelerates decay. •Even if repairs are successful, this ar twork will never reg ain its original appearance. Criteria for Deaccession •One or more of the following: ü Condition or security cannot be guaranteed ü Re quires excessive maintenance or has faulty design or wo rkmanship, or repair is impractical ü Damaged and repair is impractical ü Po ses a threat to public safety Site changes have occur red Adverse and unabated public reaction for 5+ years Ar tist requested deaccession Site is being privatized •Missing ear •Rust •Concrete staining •Missing ear •Broken nose •Decay at base •Missing eye •Rust •Landscape issues •Missing tail •Rust •Paint failure •Paint failure •Paint failure •Decay at base •Rust at welds •Landscape issues •Broken ear •Landscape issues •Close-up example of sharp rusty edges •Bolt covers easily broken off, exposing bolts Staff Recommendation •Approve the deaccession of Michele Alacantra's Animal Series Sculptures at Dougher ty Hills Dog Park. •Provide Staff direction if the City Council wishes to consider commissioning new ar twork for the Dougher ty Hills Dog Park.