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Quick hide your wallet.
The poor starving artists in Scottsdale need more
money and the royal rulers of Scottsdale think
YOU should give it to them.
Of course the term "poor starving artists" is
a relative term.
The artist that designed the art for a bus stop on
Chandler Blvd and Arizona Avenue in Chandler
was receiving $200 and hour for her art work.
Corporate welfare program for Scottsdale artists needs more money!!!! Scottsdale Public Art seeks funding Cultural Council rifts ease; cash for hiring urged by Sonja Haller - Jan. 15, 2012 09:36 PM The Republic | azcentral.com Scottsdale Public Art is strapped, and there's an urgent need to find funding so the program survives. But the tension between Public Art and leaders of its parent organization, the Scottsdale Cultural Council, has calmed for now. "I think we're ready to move forward," said Scottsdale Public Art Director Valerie Homer. "I hope this is something we can put behind us." The good news/bad news scenarios were presented last week at a Public Art advisory-board meeting. Homer said staffing levels have fallen from 9½ positions over the past few years to 6½. One lost position was that of Public Art Associate Director Margaret Bruning, who left in October to work for the Los Angeles County Arts Commission. Homer also lamented the loss of support staffers to help with event staging. "Staff is a bit stressed now," Homer said. Asked why the savings in salaries from departed employees could not be put into new hires, Homer said. Cultural Council President Bill Banchs had not approved filling the positions. Homer beat the drum of needed funding. Public Art needs to work with Scottsdale staff members on revising two city ordinances to infuse money into its coffers, she said. Public Art funding, tied to a percentage of new construction costs, has decreased significantly. One idea was to expand the city's art in a private-development ordinance beyond the downtown area to include all industrial and commercial developments and some residential and mixed-use developments in excess of $1 million permit valuation. Public Art's revision of its 10-year master plan, which would include ideas for funding solutions, stalled in the fall after a consultant suggested that Public Art separate from the Cultural Council. Ellen Andres-Schneider, a Cultural Council board-of-trustees member, said the process is under way again with representatives from both entities working together. "We have come to an agreement and can move forward without any hitches," she said. Public Art board member Bret Sassenberg wants a master plan that addresses funding and staffing challenges. "The plan has got to have teeth for the benefit of the program," he said. |