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Bellingham Arts Commission

BEL-ART-2025-01-07 January 07, 2025 Arts Commission City of Bellingham
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The Bellingham Arts Commission convened for its January meeting to address two significant public art projects and discuss systemic changes to the city's percent-for-art program. The commission unanimously approved combining two major infrastructure projects — the Roeder Lift Station reconstruction and the Squalcombe Creek Estuary project — for a combined public art budget exceeding $400,000. This innovative approach reflects the commission's recognition that some infrastructure locations are poorly suited for public art viewing, while adjacent projects offer better visibility and community engagement opportunities. Public Works Project Manager Tim Hohmann presented the proposal to integrate art into the Squalcombe Creek Estuary project, which will reconstruct three bridges and potentially realign the creek to improve fish passage and reduce flooding. The commission endorsed the city's plan to embed an artist early in the design process, following successful models from other regions where artists have collaborated with engineers from project inception to create cohesive, integrated public art solutions. The commission also received an update on the Lakewood Underpass mural project, where Paper Whale organization is working with the WURST crew artists to create wayfinding-oriented artwork that incorporates both traditional and anglicized spellings of "Whatcom." The design concept features large hands pointing east toward mountains and west toward water, with subtle iconography embedded within the composition. A significant portion of the meeting focused on addressing the city's growing backlog of percent-for-art projects. With over 20 projects worth approximately $2 million in the pipeline, staff proposed establishing an artist roster system similar to those used by Seattle and ArtsWA. This would streamline the selection process by conducting one comprehensive call for artists rather than individual competitions for each project, potentially reducing timeline fro

**Squalcombe Creek/Roeder Lift Station Project Combination:** Unanimous approval to combine the 1% for art funding from both projects (approximately $400,000 total) and to investigate a process for selecting an artist to be embedded in the design team from the project's early stages. **Artist Roster System:** No formal vote taken, but commission e…

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The commission engaged in extensive discussion about how to embed artists in major infrastructure projects while complying with federal procurement requirements. Tim Hohmann explained the challenges of selecting consultant teams for federally funded projects, where WSDOT standards and mandated language limit flexibility in RFQ processes. The commission worked through the distinction between hiring an "art coordinator" versus embedding a qualified artist directly in the engineering design team. The conversation revealed tension between procurement requirements that focus on the engineering aspects (99% of the project scope) and the need to integrate artistic vision from the beginning. Commission members referenced successful models lik…
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**Tim Hohmann (Public Works):** Strongly advocated for early artist integration but constrained by federal procurement requirements. Sought commission guidance on balancing engineering expertise requirements with artistic vision needs. **Commission Members:** Unanimous support for artist integration but insisted on maintaining competitive, open selection processes. Emphasized distinction between project management roles and artistic creation ro…
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**Tim Hohmann, on procurement challenges:** "How do I tell them what an artist is to get them to put an artist on the team? I'd love to hear the Commission's thoughts on that." **Commission member, on artist integration models:** "I think what you're really looking for is an artist selection process early on so the artist is identified and can get into the trenches with your wonderful engineers to really figure out what is the best solution for incorporating art into the project." **Commissi…
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Commission members Taylor and Amy will meet to develop a plan for updating the Arts Commission policies and procedures. Staff will investigate artist roster systems used by Seattle and ArtsWA, researching legal, purchasing, and equity considerations for potential implementation in Bellingham. Staff will schedule site visits for additional percent-for-art projects, including Post Point treatment plant improvements. The commission will receive a comprehensive overview of all current projects and priorities at …

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The commission shifted from considering individual project management for the Roeder Lift Station to a collaborative approach combining two major projects, significantly expanding the artistic possibilities and budget. This represents a new model for the city where infrastructure projects can be strategically combined when one offers better public visibility than another. The commission moved from informal discussions about managing project backlogs…
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## Meeting Overview The Bellingham Arts Commission convened on January 7, 2025, for their first meeting of the new year, gathering virtually and in-person to tackle two major public art projects and address growing challenges in their percent-for-art program. Commission members were present to hear updates on significant infrastructure projects that would incorporate public art, including a substantial combined effort worth over $400,000 and updates on a highly visible downtown mural project. The meeting highlighted both the opportunities and complexities facing Bellingham's public art program as it enters 2025 with an unprecedented backlog of over 20 projects worth approximately $2 million in public art funding. The discussions revealed the tension between maintaining thorough, equitable artist selection processes and the practical need to move projects forward efficiently as construction timelines demand early artist integration. ## Squalcombe Creek and Roeder Lift Station Art Integration Tim Hohmann from Public Works presented what would become the meeting's most substantive discussion: a proposal to combine the 1% for art funding from two adjacent infrastructure projects to create a more impactful and visible public art opportunity. The Roeder Lift Station reconstruction and the Squalcombe Creek estuary fish passage project, each budgeted at approximately $20 million, would together provide over $400,000 for public art. Hohmann explained the challenge with the lift station location: "It's located way in the back here up against the railroad tracks. It's kind of not very terribly visible from the road. You can see it, but it kind of sits well set back from the road in this area back here behind a power station behind these trucks and we didn't... Staff felt it wasn't a very good location for art. Definitely not a place where people won't are going to want to go back in there and view art." The solution emerged from the proximity of the Squalcombe Creek project, which will reconstruct three bridges including the Roeder Avenue Bridge over Squalcombe Creek, the railroad bridge, and a port truck bridge. The creek may even be realigned as part of improving fish passage. This project offers significantly better vi…
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### Meeting Overview The Bellingham Arts Commission met on January 7, 2025, to discuss two major public art projects: the Squalcombe Creek Fish Passage and Rotor Lift Station percent-for-art approach, and an update on the Lakewood Underpass mural project. ### Key Terms and Concepts **Percent for Art (1% for Art):** A policy requiring that 1% of eligible capital construction project budgets be dedicated to public art. In this meeting, the combined Squalcombe Creek and Rotor Lift Station projects have over $400,000 available for art. **Request for Qualifications (RFQ):** A procurement process where potential contractors or artists submit their credentials and experience, used to narrow down candidates before moving to the proposal stage. **Artist on Design Team:** An approach where an artist is embedded with engineers and architects from the early stages of a project to integrate art seamlessly into the infrastructure design, rather than adding art as an afterthought. **Art Roster:** A pre-vetted list of qualified artists that jurisdictions can use to select from for projects, potentially streamlining the artist selection process rather than doing individual calls for each project. **WSDOT:** Washington State Department of Transportation, which has jurisdiction over projects involving state highways and must approve artwork visible from traveled roadways. **Fish Passage:** Infrastructure designed to allow fish to move around human-made barriers like dams or culverts, in this case improving salmon access up Squalcombe Creek. **Paper Whale:** The organization working with the city to coordinate the Lakewood Underpass mural project and manage artist selection. **Tourism Commission:** A city body that provided input on the underpass mural project, requesting wayfinding elements pointing toward downtown and mountains. ### Key People at This Meeting | Name | Role / Affiliation | |---|---| | Tim Hohmann | City Public Works staff presenting the Squalcombe Creek project | | Gretchen Leggett | Representative from Paper Whale presenting the underpass mural update | | Taylor | Arts Commission staff coordinator | | Darby | Arts Commission staff | | Tara | Arts Commission staff (referenced) | | Jonathan Shilk | Parks project manager (referenced) | ### Background Context The city of Bellingham is dealing with an unprecedented volume of percent…
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Transportation & Infrastructure Government Operations Artswa City Of Seattle Paper Whale Port Of Bellingham Tourism Commission Wsdot Amy Darby Gretchen Leggett Jonathan Shilk Tara Taylor Tim Hohmann Vicki Scurry Place Post Point Place Roeder Avenue Artist Roster System Artist Selection Federal Procurement Fish Passage Infrastructure Investment Lakewood Underpass Mural Percent For Art Procurement Project Management Public Art Roeder Lift Station Squalcombe Creek Estuary Wayfinding