TO:
Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council
THROUGH:
Bruce Moe, City Manager
FROM:
Mark Leyman, Parks and Recreation Director
Eilen Stewart, Cultural Arts Manager
SUBJECT:Title
Consideration of Location and Cost for the Shark Mural by Artist Eric Snyder and Disbursement of up to $65,000 from the Public Art Trust Fund (Parks and Recreation Director Leyman).
(Estimated Time: 30 Mins.)
A) APPROVE LOCATION AND COST
B) ALLOCATE FUNDSBody
Body
_________________________________________________________
RECOMMENDATION:
Staff recommends that the City Council discuss and approve the location and cost for the Shark mural by artist Eric Snyder and allocate up to $65,000 from the Public Art Trust Fund (PATF) as part of Phase II of the Mural Project.
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
If approved, the total cost for the mural will be an amount not to exceed $65,000. The PATF currently has a total balance of approximately $1.7 million with around $1.0 million in allocated funds and about $686,000 in unallocated funds. The use of PATF funds for this project is congruent with the purpose of the PATF as detailed in the Manhattan Beach Municipal Code Section 10.90.050.
BACKGROUND:
At the March 7, 2023 meeting, City Council directed the Cultural Arts Commission (CAC) to develop a work plan of several items including Phase II of the Mural Program. Launched in 2018, Phase I of the Mural Project installed five artworks by four artists from California. The locations and installation methodology for several of the murals presented challenges that were incorporated into the RFP for this Phase II of the Mural Project.
Staff worked with the Cultural Arts Commission to develop a Request for Proposals
(RFP) for seven locations of murals around the City, including locations in north and east Manhattan Beach where there are fewer opportunities for Public Art.
Staff received over 115 applications from artists of varying ages, skill levels, and disciplines and narrowed this pool down to 100 complete applications eligible for review by the CAC. The CAC reviewed all eligible applications, selected 27 artworks, and assigned them to seven locations with several options identified per site.
City Council reviewed the proposals and selected artwork for the seven locations at the September 19, 2023 and November 21, 2023 meetings. At the October 17, 2023 meeting, City Council directed staff to bring back the Shark proposal by artist Eric Snyder in addition to other submissions to be considered for Location 6 (Police/Fire Station building). Having assigned Pamela Wall to location 6 at the November 21, 2023 meeting, City Council directed the Cultural Arts Commission and staff to research and propose new locations where the Shark mural could be installed.
DISCUSSION:
Staff reviewed available walls owned by the City of Manhattan Beach where the Shark mural can be installed (presentation attached) and identified eight possible locations.
Due to the unique nature of this design (a trompe l’oeil window with huge three dimensional (3D) shark seemingly coming out at the viewer), several factors must be considered that may not be present with other mural designs:
• In order to create the desired 3D effect of the shark, a drop shadow must be rendered below the painted window. This shadow occupies nearly 50% of the total height of the mural.
• Much of the effect of this design is achieved through the larger than life scale of the artwork. A smaller paintable area (where 50% of the height is taken up by a shadow) will result in a very small and underwhelming shark.
• Unlike other murals which can take challenging portions of a wall into consideration and either incorporate or work around them, the 3D effect and realistic painting style of this artwork does not lend itself to a surface with obstructions such as lighting fixtures, windows, and other wall elements.
• All cost estimates in the attached presentation account for the painting of the exact shark image as it was proposed for the Police Department/Fire building. Should other elements or an expansion of the mural be desired, a new cost would need to be developed by staff and negotiated with the artist.
In their review of proposed locations, the Cultural Arts Commission recommended either of the west facing wall locations at the new Fire Station 2 location at 1400 Manhattan Beach Boulevard.
Staff recommends that the City Council discuss and approve the location and cost for the Shark mural by artist Eric Snyder and allocate up to $65,000 from the Public Art Trust Fund (PATF) as part of Phase II of the Mural Project.
PUBLIC OUTREACH:
This item was reviewed by the Cultural Arts Commission (CAC) at the March 20, June 19, August 21, and December 18, 2023 meetings. This item was discussed by the City Council at the September 19, October 17, and November 21, 2023 meetings.
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW:
The City has reviewed the proposed mural project for compliance with the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) and has determined that there is no possibility that the activity may have a significant effect on the environment; therefore, pursuant to Section 15061(b)(3) (the “common sense” exemption) of the State CEQA Guidelines, the agreement is exempt from CEQA. Additionally, the project qualifies for a categorical exemption pursuant to Section 15301 (Existing Facilities) of the State CEQA Guidelines, given that the project consists of minor alterations of existing private or public structures, with negligible or no expansion of use. Furthermore, there are no features that distinguish this project from others in the exempt class; therefore, there are no unusual circumstances.
LEGAL REVIEW:
The City Attorney has prepared the agreement template.
ATTACHMENTS:
1. Artist Agreement
2. PowerPoint Presentation