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7 <br /> Mr. Blake Hurt, a Task Force member, said arts make the City a fun place to be. <br />Mr. Hurt said the recommended charge for the Commission is as follows: Prepare an <br />annual report for City Council on the state of ar ts and culture in Charlottesville; Develop <br />appropriate policy procedures for review of arts and culture funding programs; Promote <br />policies for public funding, incentives, subsidies, and tax - abatement for arts and culture <br />programs and facilities; Promote an d support arts and culture activities; Establish, <br />implement and manage arts and cultural programs; and Encourage funding and seeking of <br />resources for arts and cultural activities. <br /> <br /> Mr. Satyendra Huja, Director of Strategic Planning, said the Commission is <br />proposed to be made of up nine members with three year staggered terms, the majority of <br />whom would be City residents, with a diverse membership. He said it is proposed to be <br />staffed through the Department of Parks and Recreation. He said Council may wan t to <br />initially appoint the current Task Force members. He said it is proposed that the <br />Commission be reviewed after three years. Funding would come from the Percent for <br />Arts program. <br /> <br /> Ms. Richards, a member of the Task Force, said this was a fun, lively group to <br />meet with. <br /> <br /> Mr. Lynch asked other than recommending the establishment of the Commission, <br />what were the recommendations of the Task Force. He said he was hoping to get <br />something more actionable from the Task Force. <br /> <br /> Mr. Huja said many issues we re discussed but the Task Force did not come up <br />with conclusions. He said a survey of arts groups was done. He said an ordinance has <br />also been drafted for establishment of an arts district. He said the Task Force felt a <br />structure was needed before they could act. <br /> <br /> Mr. Hurt said the Task Force had a pretty big charge. He said the consensus is <br />that art is a difficult thing to make a judgment on. He said the Task Force feels they <br />should reflect on past decisions made by Council about funding arts, develo p a rational <br />process, and try to identify groups that have not approached Council. <br /> <br /> Mr. Schilling concurred with Mr. Lynch's concern. He said he favors the concept <br />of a Commission and voted for the Task Force charge, but had an expectation to see a <br />respo nse, especially funding recommendations. He said we need to have a better <br />understanding of where the process went off. <br /> <br /> Mr. Hurt said that Task Force members are busy people and money is needed for <br />staffing. <br /> <br /> Mr. Schilling said he would have to weigh th is against the Task Force that was <br />just created to study Council changes which will have no additional funding. He said <br />right now he would have a hard time with that. <br /> <br /> Mr. Caravati thanked the Task Force and said he is looking at approaching arts in <br />a lo gical manner and supports the concept. He suggested the matter be brought back in <br />two weeks. He said he would be interested in having an ROI formula review of the arts. <br /> <br /> Mr. Hurt disagreed with Mr. Caravati about the ROI and said arts should not be <br />red uced to an economic argument. <br /> <br /> Ms. Richards said the Commission on Children and Families was a model for the <br />proposed Commission. <br /> <br /> Mr. Cox said the Task Force realized there is an ongoing need, and the <br />Commission would be the vehicle by which the discuss ion can continue. He said the <br />Task Force's conversations were quite encompassing. He said a similar group is used <br />successfully in Burlington, Vermont. He said the staffing could be covered by grants. <br />He said he hopes to see this as a way to leverage th e City's funding of the arts and would <br />formalize the City's commitment to the arts. <br />