City councillors put their support for public art on display during budget talks Monday.
It all began with a motion from Coun. Shelley Biermanski to reduce the annual contribution to the Public Art Reserve.
She said she had heard complaints from the public that there was more than $1 million with its feet up in the reserve when it could be stamping down next year’s tax increase as it was as a pandemic-era measure from 2020 to 2023.
The change would have shaved 0.1 per cent from the 2025 tax increase by halving the yearly contribution to the public art reserve to $131,500, but after some discussion and a presentation from Emily Baker, who described herself as the longest-serving member of the arts advisory committee, Coun. Biermanski withdrew the motion.
Baker is also its chair and the curator of the Art Gallery of St. Albert downtown. She said the public art team is excited to pursue small- and large-scale opportunities in 2025 and 2026. The reserve enables larger, longer-term projects.
“It takes time to consult on what projects may be appropriate,” she said, describing public art as the sort of things that, for a city, make a house a home. Public art is evidence of a community’s values, emblematic of its history, a vehicle to make individual pieces feel like they’re part of a grander scheme.
“The vision for 2025 is bright and vibrant,” Baker said.
She said murals provide value for 15 years, mosaics last even longer and that city departments that wanted public art incorporated in their projects can’t do so without predictable and consistent budgetary support.
The uncommitted balance of the Public Art Reserve was $1,057,669 as of Sept. 30, and is separated into two categories:
- Funds available for New Acquisitions: $564,886; and
- Funds available for Lifecycle Maintenance & Restoration: $492,782.
A city backgrounder said there would be no impact to public art projects in 2025 if the contribution were cut but “ongoing reductions to the reserve transfers can make future planning challenging.
“Not knowing from year to year that the fund transfer will happen as anticipated can impact ability to align potential public art with capital projects in design phase, as well as capacity to determine the level of integration or scale of artwork that can be supported.”
Coun. Biermanski clarified that she has nothing against public art but was trying to act in the best interest of the taxpayer. She pointed out that she sits on the arts advisory board, but that their most recent monthly meeting was “cancelled by administration.”
She said she was then surprised to see a number of items funded by the arts reserve that weren’t included in the first draft of the city budget.
“It was a means of looking at accountability for reserves,” she said. “It would have been helpful at last month’s meeting to mention those projects that are coming forward.”
Speaking of public art, Andrea Bowes, visual arts program assistant at the city, confirms original artist Al Henderson is working with a $40,000 contract to replace Saint Albert the Great, the bronze statue stolen in 2023. He will return to the city with a proposal and if approved, should be able to install the new sculpture inside St. Albert Place in 2026.
