Bemidji Arts Commission. Help or Hinder?

Bemidji's art community is alive and well. Just take a walk around downtown and view all of the impressive artwork on the Sculpture Walk. And the not-so-impressive artwork. Does the city need help selecting and placing art in public spaces?

Some citizens are proposing a new Arts Commission to help the city avoid the problem that arose when public art was removed from the sculpture walk.  It was returned following an emotional and sincere outcry by the community.   A commission not a new idea. The idea has been floating around for some time and there have even been proposals pitched to the city in the past.

One well-respected local art advocate believes we are long past needing a group to help the city. Sandy K. wrote about it in a letter to the editor earlier this month. Here's an excerpt:

An arts commission can help draft and facilitate a comprehensive public art policy, advise the city council and manager on arts related issues, and provide a forum for citizen comment, etc. Such commissions are usually made up of artists, designers, architects and arts advocates who submit applications, are appointed by the Mayor and voted on by the Council.

Most public art policies include criteria and procedures for: commissioning temporary or permanent art or memorials; identifying appropriate locations for art on city property; removal or relocation of existing works of art, determining maintenance and safety requirements for public art; accepting gifts of art, and public art planning.

Sandy's proposal seems reasonable.  Will the Mayor and council take the initiative and make it happen? Sandy concludes:

I believe our community, its artists, the Council and staff could all benefit from the formation of an arts commission and the development of a thoughtful public art policy. Our artists and the public deserve no less.

Other cities have them: Edina Art Center Board. Hutchinson Public Arts Commission. Coon Rapids Arts Commission.  What do you think of the Arts Commission idea? Here's some public art to ponder as you consider the idea.

Does camouflage count as art? 

Joshua Callaghan's "Almost Invisible Boxes" - in Culver City, California are utility boxes painted to disappear into the scenery. Another--less controversial--public art project for Bemidji?

Yarn Bombing?

Image of yarn bombed tree in Ohio, courtesy of fibesquad blog at wordpres.

Yet another form of public art is yarn bombing or graffiti knitting. Think of it as a sweater for your tree, or a hat for your rock, or a bikini for your beaver statue. The Star Tribune had a story last month about yarn bombing in Minneapolis. See more pictures on Flickr here. Bemidji seems like a perfect place for yarn bombing. After all, we are the home of Bemidji Woolen Mills and we do need sweaters much of the year.

But back to the question at hand:  We love our art in Bemidji. Would we love a City Arts Commission?

Funny How Time Slips Away

Summer's slipping away and I haven't blogged much at all.  Maybe a couple of times. Well, summer is almost gone--it's September next week (aack!) and it's time to get back in the habit of blogging on a regular basis.

I like blogging because it gives me a way of sharing my opinion (everybody's got one), highlighting the good things happening in the city (I see lots of great things), or venting on bad things that are happening in the city (no shortage there either, unfortunately). I know, facebook gives you that outlet too and I admit, FB is part of the reason I haven't blogged. FB is quick and short and mindless. It kind of sucks you in and -poof- the whole night is gone. Blogging takes more thought and maybe even a bit of work--research, developing your narrative, writing complete sentences. You know, thinking.

Another reason to start posting again is because I am running for city council. I hope that my blog posts will help the people of Ward 4 get to know me and my ideas on city issues.

Getting ready for door knocking. My candidate pin.

But my ultimate reason for blogging is to get more local government information out to city residents, try to help make sense of it and encourage civic participation.

For example, did you know that there is a city newsletter posted on the city's webpage every week? Here's the link to archived newsletters.
Did you know that there are city volunteer openings on two commissions? City Charter Commission and Joint Planning Commission (JPC). These volunteer positions have been open for quite a while.

You'd think that citizens would be anxious for opportunities to have a voice in the city's affairs, but the city has had a difficult time keeping their six spots filled on the JPC, even though it's a paid volunteer position ($50 per meeting). Personally, I think the JPC is too large (12 members, 6 township and 6 city reps.). I think that reducing the membership to 8 would encourage better attendance (there is rarely full attendance) and tighten up meetings.  Having 12 members just seems to allow members the ability to be free-riders. I imagine members thinking:

"If the other 11 members prepare, I really don't have to. I don't have to read the whole packet, I can skim  it. Who would notice if I'm not  prepared for the meetings? Everybody can't talk, there are 12 of us, for crying out loud!"

Don't get me wrong. I believe the JPC members take their roles seriously and work hard, but  I watched the JPC tonight. There were only nine in attendance. I think it needs to be smaller.

It's good to be back writing a blog. I hope you'll return again. In the mean time, "gee ain't it funny, how time slips away" (courtesy of Willie Nelson).

Bus Stops and Benches--Would you Pay to Sit on a Public Bench?

What's the solution to the problem businesses are having with loitering in the bus shelters downtown?  The Bemidji City Council voted on Monday to leave the bus shelters in place at 4th and Beltrami downtown--for now, at least.

The Downtown Development Authority (DDA) had requested they be removed and, while not mentioned in the DDA's request, the assumed reason is because the shelters have become the day-long  hangouts for a group of people--and they are not downtown for the shopping.

Here's an extreme solution to the problem.


PAY & SIT: the private bench (HD) from Fabian Brunsing on Vimeo.

WOW! Let's hope it never comes to this!!

There is a problem with loitering and panhandling downtown.  The community needs to work toward a solution that works for everyone. Any ideas?

Mayor's Big Idea: Reducing Staff Support

The Mayor came armed with a big idea to Monday's city council meeting. (Bemidji Pioneer report) Unfortunately, his suggestion, to eliminate staff support for some city commissions and committees is misguided at best and self-serving at worst.

First of all, it is the manager's job to decide where and how staff should be used. According to the charter, the city manager ". . .shall direct and supervise all departments, services, and agencies of the city, except as otherwise provided by law or charter."

I take that to mean the manager will decide how best to use his staff's time. Additionally, the charter admonishes the council against interference with administration, ". . . the council shall deal with and control city administrative officers and employees under the jurisdiction of the manager solely through the manager."

I guess the Mayor forgot that staffing decisions are the responsibility of the city manager. 

One can presume that the purpose of the Mayor's suggestion is to save money.  Unfortunately, unless he is planning to cut more staff or reduce employee hours, his suggestion does not save money.  This red herring does however, reduce customer service and has already put dedicated staff on edge.  The affected employees appear blindsided by the suggestion. 

Policy issues are the purview of council--setting the budget and the like.  Personnel issues should be left to the manager. The Mayor knows that, so it is confusing why he brought up the issue at all.  Of course "reducing government" is the mantra of the Republicans.  Maybe he is polishing his conservative credentials for his run at the MN House?

Whatever the motive, this is one "big idea" that should be dropped.  Let's hope the rest of the council agrees.

Terrazzo Pizzazo

What do you get when you put a talented mosaic artist together with a master terrazzo floor installer? You get spectacular terrazzo floor art.  That is what is being created during the next couple months at the Bemidji Regional Event Center. 

Barbara Keith (above) is the artist who designed the floor. Al is the master installer (he's Italian; apparently all the best are).  Together they chose the colors and made samples and discarded them and then made them again.  The design, colors, and samples were reviewed and okayed by the public art committee, a group of local artists and designers. The Pioneer covered the story this week.

Brass inserts

Separators for different colors (aluminum?)

Advance Tile workmen laying out the design

I predict that the floor will become a regional attraction in its own right. You can follow the construction progress on Barb's blog or on the Facebook page of the Bemidji Regional Event Center.
 

No Primary in Bemidji Ward 4

Is it me or JD?

As many of you know, I filed for election to Ward 4 of the Bemidji City Council against the incumbent. This article in The Pioneer outlines all of the local races and notes that Ward 4 is the only one that won't go to a primary.

It is interesting that two other candidates from Ward 4 chose to file for the at-large position. One of them, Byron Rock, told me that he thought the incumbent W4 council member would be hard to beat, hence his decision to run at-large. Hmm. I think JD is beatable.

The other at-large candidate from W4, Linda Lemmer, called me and indicated that she was thinking of running for W4, but had second thoughts when I filed. I got the impression that she did not want to run against me. Hmm. I think I am a great candidate too!

It should be an interesting campaign season.

Bits From Around Bemidji: Community Initiatives Worth Checking Out

Do you ever feel like there is so much going on in Bemidji that it is hard to keep up? ME TOO! Here are some really cool things that are happening in Bemidji thanks to volunteers (and paid staff) who are stepping up and making our community better.

Active Living
“Active Living is a way of life that integrates physical activity into daily routines.” This initiative is funded by a contract with Blue Cross Blue Shield through their foundation, Prevention Minnesota and the tobacco settlement money. They are the organization behind the "Do" campaign. This is the first year of a four year initiative. Their project includes "Fit City Bemidji." Wondering what there is to do for recreational activity in Bemidji? They have listed just about every possible activity available in the Bemidji area (including phone numbers), here.

Shared Vision
"Shared Vision is a community effort to address the issue of racial diversity and racial disparity." Based on information gathered through a community survey, this group of community volunteers has proposed a set of goals and strategies for improving the community. They have organized several strategies under these categories:

• Cultural Understanding and Respect
• Educational Attainment and Skill Development
• Civic Engagement and Leadership
• Economic Opportunities

This group has been very successful at getting Ojibwe language signs up in nearly 100 business and government locations in Bemidji. Their next big project is sponsoring Leadership in Ethnically Diverse Communities with the Blandin Foundation. The program is designed to help a diverse group of community members effectively engage across cultural differences to create a more inclusive community of Bemidji.

You can (should) sign up. The program is four sessions spread out over two months. All program sessions will be held at the Hampton Inn in Bemidji, MN, and each participant is asked to attend all four sessions. The sessions are from 9am to 1pm except the first session which is 9am until 5:30 pm on first day (May 5) and (May 6). The other dates of this free program will be May 19th, June 2nd and June 17th. Call Becky Adams at 877-882-2257 to register. Register sooner than later. Did I mention that it's FREE?

Community Resource Connections (CRC)
"Community Resource Connections, Inc. exists for the purpose of improving access to and the effectiveness of community services through collaboration, coordination & integration." Their website has an amazing search tool that will help you locate service providers and agencies in the Bemidji Area. When you click on "Find Service," you will be able to browse service providers by service or by name. For example, if I want to find all the "disability supports," it will bring up twenty-two providers with links to their information or website. Pretty awesome. CRC is currently working on a volunteer matching site that will be searchable for types of volunteer opportunities available in the community. No link yet. They are beta testing it right now, but when it goes live, I will let you know.

A New Chief Bemidji Statue?

Do you think the current Chief Bemidji Statue in Library Park should be replaced? A group of local volunteers does. They have been meeting over the past nine months or so to figure out how to make that happen. At Monday's (3/15/10) council meeting, the council will formally appoint the committee to work on a process for a new statue. A list of the proposed committee members is listed on page 8 of the council agenda. The committee invites your comments on their blog.

Documenting Pre-contact History
The Beltrami County History Center received a Legacy Grant of $6,990 to hire a professional historian to complete research and documentation of an archaeological site of a Woodland Period fishing camp (1,000-3,000 years ago), in preparation for nomination to the National Register of Historic Places. Thirty-one organizations from 18 counties received a total of $147,955 in January. Congrats to the History Center for being one of them! Their website also has information about upcoming history center events.

These initiatives are aimed at improving our community and are only a few of the great things that local volunteers are doing to make Bemidji a better place to live. Can you share any others?