Re-Imagined Space gets go ahead from cultural commission

The Carson City Cultural Commission on Monday endorsed a new project for filling the city’s vacant storefronts with art.

Called Re-Imagined Space, the project is a collaboration between the Carson City Visitors Bureau and the Redevelopment Authority Citizens Committee.

The Board of Supervisors votes Thursday to approve $10,000 recommended by RACC to fund the project. The CCVB would match that and Joel Dunn, CCVB executive director, asked the Cultural Commission if it would assist in organizing volunteers.

“You got me,” said Commissioner Barbara D’Anneo. “I am 100 percent behind it.”

The project would install art in empty storefronts as a way to improve the space, promote artists and help property owners find tenants.

“I think every vacant property in the redevelopment district wants to be a part of it,” said Dunn.

Mark Salinas, arts and culture coordinator, presented a draft of an application for installing public art as well the arts portion of a draft of the city’s encroachment policy for downtown businesses.

The former is a form to help the city keep an inventory of art installations and not to police what people do.

“My position is as an advocate of art and not as an art cop, believe me,” Salinas told the commission.

The proposed encroachment policy says that applications for art must be reviewed by the Public Art Project Panel, ad hoc panels to be assembled to consider each project.

Salinas also presented a draft of the commission’s annual report for 2016-2017 and work plan for 2017-2018 to be presented to the supervisors in April.

The work plan includes ongoing work to develop policies and procedures for public art in the city.

The commission also discussed funding for special events. The money comes through RACC, which provides 40 percent of its special events funding to the commission to give grants for arts and culture events.

That funding is going to diminish over the next few years, from $22,000 in the coming fiscal year to $16,000 in 2021-2022.

Salinas suggested the commission consider giving out grants of fixed amounts, for $5,000 and $2,500, to arts groups as well as setting aside some money to award $1,000 grants to individual artists.

That item was tabled for action at the commission’s next meeting as was a presentation on the upcoming Carson City Ghost Walk by Mary Bennett.