Art in Public Spaces Master Plan

I agree with those that say we need to stop calling ourselves the "City of the Arts." We don't even have a decent public art gallery. Forget the damn arts or make a longer term plan for actually funding galleries instead of adding big dumb statues or something that no locals actually stop to appreciate. The idea of the rotating art space inside the station is the best one here.

To be honest, I worry about the financial cost of having more enhancements at this time. I would prefer to put this on the back burner for the next few years. Our property taxes are simply much too high and are increasing every year. This is an easy cut back to make. More financial burden on our tax base just adds to our current stress at this time. I'm not in favour of increasing art installations, to be honest.

Would like to see a few iconic art installations. For example the bronze sculptures on the Malacon in Puerto Vallarta or the "Tree of used Cars" in Vancouver. Love them or hate them, people know them when they see images of them. Port Moody has done a wonderful job of placing small to medium scale art in public spaces however, we have not yet put up that one special piece of Public art that gets and keeps people talking for years.

The city of Port Moody has a branding issue. The “City of the Arts” where no one can find any arts. Yes there are clear examples of public works and there is the art center on St. John’s but that is it. Where is the community? How does one get involved? All questions I have been asking for the years I have lived in Port Moody. I am a practicing artist and have had art studios in Vancouver’s Gastown and in New West (the latter while living in Port Moody). Where there are studio spaces there is an active art community. Port Moody does own the Esplanade Art Studios but that space can have 11 people in it and no timeline or requirement to be participating in the community. Note that this space has not had a vacancy in years nor is there any form of access to the public.

This is where “The City of the Arts” falls short, there is no place to be a practicing artist. In the Arts and Culture Master report the city states: “The City’s Sustainability Report Card identifies culture as an important driver in creating a complete community, and encourages the development of more arts-related spaces (e.g. live/work studios, new businesses)”. Where are these art studios/spaces? Is the city expecting developers to provide this? The best part of funding studio space is the people/artists who come there to create will organically build on that community at no cost to the city. That growth is free. That growth drives business and brings people into Port moody. As much as funding public art is fantastic, funding a place for a art community to grow is where the real value is.

Please note the quality or art should remain at high standards as there seems to be a lot of missteps with the caliber of art used mainly at the Inlet station skytrain. There have been a few larger banners along the fence with art printed, this is a huge potential for something really creative and it was just lost by repeating a few poorly executed images. It looks like a huge waste of money. Strategically placing money in a thriving community should bring more options of art and ideas to the city.

This project started in Jan 2019 and the presentation is planned for March/April 2021. It's a beautiful draft with glossy pictures, great ideas, suggestions and discoveries and obviously a lot of time (over 2 years), research, passion, labour and hours were put into the plan and elaborate draft document but I can't help but worry about the cost and expenses it must have taken. We're a little city struggling with finances during a pandemic that is causing more strain and tough times than ever for everyone . I love and appreciate art and culture and support community events and programs so I would rather see our limited funds and money spent on the actual events, facilities, programs and citizens with a simpler presentation and plan and possibly. I would be interested to see if we could look at contracting some of our amazing, creative local artists and talents for new public art and would prefer we continue offering our existing programs and events at a reasonable cost to citizens without the extra expense, time and resources it must have taken to prepare this draft.

It looks pretty polished for a draft plan. I think public art needs to do a better job reflecting our history and natural context. Art should reference our history as a rail town, our indigenous history, or our position at the end of the inlet. No tax dollars should be used to pay for capital costs or maintenance of public art - instead only donations or CACs should be used. Art isn't the purpose of a municipality. I wish we spent as much time and attention on traffic or housing as we do art and sustainability.

Please do not spend money we do not have. Do not add to our unbearable tax burden to purchase expensive artwork.

Why not ask local aspiring artists to show their art instead of paying high sums as we have done in the past. We are a small city and can not afford expensive art installations.

Previous local councils have made really stupid decisions on artwork of which some are very expensive while others are hideous.

For some crazy reason we call ourselves ‘City of the Arts’ (while we have amazing outdoor spaces, hiking trails, ocean, lakes etc.) so supposedly we should have local artists who would like to contribute.

I think that for the most part public art in Port Moody is a failure. With a few exceptions, public art in Port Moody is Disnyesque, inane and irrellevant, generic and embarrassing. I believe that funds and policy should be focussed on providing secure, affordable studio space and secure, affordable housing for artists and other creative enterprises.

The cost implications are glossed over. What is the current budget and how much more will be spent. Who determines what is good art and what is appropriate to a specific location? Much concession is made to various indian bands and their heritage. Did any of them have enough interest to participate? Overall this is a nice wish list, but inappropriate for current budget and financial problems of the city

The city should step away from having absolutely anything to do with public art ranging from its funding and installation in public spaces to their maintenance.

As we’ve seen again and again, an overwhelming percent of art is a function of time. Most public art does not age well due to rapidly changing aesthetic sensibilities and evolution of public tastes and interests. Furthermore there is no successful “generally accepted best practice” which can select what is “good”, ethical, and suitable for public spaces. Hence it is impossible to pick art installations that will satisfy the majority of Port Moody residents. Given this, the city should step away from public art.

The funds for generation, installation and maintenance of public-art can be spent on many important city projects so that our taxes help the whole community not just some.

I am not against art and I am not blind to its enormous economic potential. The City Council should encourage artists to take residence in our city; but how? Forcing the developers to create artist work spaces as part of their development plans as well as creating rental units for low income individuals and families.

The only acceptable public art is one which involves nature. This could be encouraged by creation of natural art installations throughout our parks and public spaces.

Thank you for soliciting input.

Mel Ogmen