LV proposes percentage of projects earmarked for art

Sito Negron

Monday, Dec. 1, 2003 | 9 a.m.

Las Vegas is considering a "percent for art" program that would dedicate 1 percent of some construction project expenses to public art.

The program is estimated to raise between $100,000 and $150,000 in its first year, city officials said. But perhaps more important is the symbolic nudge it would create, another way of putting the city's stamp on the idea that aesthetics contribute mightily to an urban area's quality of life.

"It basically says the city has grown up to the point where it feels this is something that would benefit its citizens, and give it a kind of identity, which is no small task in Las Vegas," said Nancy Deaner, who manages cultural affairs for the city's Leisure Services Department, and is a member of the city Arts Commission.

The proposal, in the form of an ordinance, was placed on the Nov. 21 City Council agenda by Mayor Oscar Goodman. It would be eligible for adoption in December.

Goodman said he got the idea from a meeting of the U.S. Conference of Mayors about a year and a half ago.

"All the cities participating in this were the what I call progressive cities, cities that have an intellectual basis," Goodman said.

The idea has been around for more than 50 years, established by Philadelphia in the 1950s. Other cities that have such programs number in the hundreds, and in the Southwest include Phoenix, Albuquerque and El Paso, Texas.

Larry Medina, a former El Paso city councilman who promoted the proposal in his city, echoed Goodman's comment about what such a program can say about a community. He said that, politically, "when the mayor is backing a percent for arts, it makes it a heck of a lot easier" to get such a program adopted.

Goodman said the decisions about arts projects will come from the Arts Commission and will be ratified by the City Council.

Percent for art proposals must take into account such procedural issues as whether the money is put into one big project or spread throughout the city, how to choose the artists and what constitutes art -- for example, is landscaping considered part of an art project.

Goodman said setting aside a pot of money for art carries an important message.

"You make a determination that art is part of a city," he said. "There's going to be a lot of trial and error but it's a step in the right direction."

As to where the art ought to be placed, he said, "I'd like to see it throughout the city. I'd like people to see the art element and see Las Vegas is finally progressive."

Michael Wardle, an artist who owns Michael Wardle Gallery in the Arts Factory downtown, said he's seen the program operate in other cities, like Scottsdale, Ariz.

He said Las Vegas needs to make sure that money goes to the artist. Wardle gave an example of a project in Arizona where about half the expense went to landscaping.

"As long as it doesn't become that, it's great," Wardle said.

Deaner said the concept is for artists to become part of a project team, involved in design from the conception.

"Instead of the art being worked in after, as an afterthought, it's part of it," Deaner said. "This will ensure that some of those projects will grow up that way from the beginning, as part of a team effort."

She mentioned as an example of such a process the newly renovated Huntridge Circle Park, which recently reopened after a makeover that included bringing in an artist to develop benches and tables that look like martini glasses.

The valley is not completely barren of public art. McCarran International Airport boasts sculptures leading up to passenger drop-off and pick-up areas, for example, and many city parks feature sculpture or murals.

Deaner said Las Vegas spends about $50,000 to $75,000 each year on art projects, and hopes the percent for art program not only will add to that, but also add to the ongoing discussion of what constitutes art and how it relates to the built environment.

"There's so many interesting issues here that aren't in other cities," Deaner said. "How do you even get art noticed here? Is the whole city public art? There are lots of discussions that could be had on this topic, which is why it needs to be very thought out, methodical, with an eye toward excellence."