The Friday Morning Group had Cathy Harrelson, candidate for St. Petersburg City Council District 3 on the hot seat last Friday. Cathy has been an investment advisor and financial professional for over twenty-five years. She is also immediate past Chair of the Suncoast Sierra Club. She is running for the City Council seat currently held by Bill Foster, who is leaving due to term limits. So Cathy came to the Friday Morning Group to hear our concerns. She got an earful.
Herb Snitzer, never the shrinking violet, looked at her campaign materials and noticed there was no mention of the arts. Cathy forthrightly explained that to get through the primary, her mail pieces to voters in District 3 had to deal with the issues of top concern to the voters in that district. To her credit, Cathy came equipped with information on the economic value of the arts and indicated that she could make use of that in the general election , but she needed to focus on "front burner" issues for the primary election.
Herb noted how the arts are too often seen as a luxury and thus get the short end of the funding stick, even in good economic times. Cathy agreed that the arts always moved to the front of the chopping block when it is government budget cutting time. Bob Devin Jones volunteered that he would be more than happy to help Cathy understand how to move the arts off the front end of the chopping block.
This lead to a vigorous discussion about how best to do that. I noted that when the City and the County were holding public input budget hearings, the artist community failed to show up and give their input. Bob responded that after all his service on governmental arts committees, that if our elected officials didn't get it by now, they were never going to get it. I pointed out that the real audience for these hearings was not the elected officials on the dais, but the general public watching on TV, or those that would be reading the newspaper accounts of the hearings.
At the end of these discussions, it was apparent to those in attendance that Cathy Harrelson would be an ally to the arts if elected. Carol Dameron suggested that Cathy contact the women in the Stuart Society at the Museum of Fine Arts and seek their support. Herb and Carol also graciously agreed to be hosts for a fund raising event for Cathy.
There was also a discussion about one of my favorite subjects - that the City is the Art rather than St. Petersburg being the "City of the Arts." I gave the group an update on the City Council's recent passage of the new Land Development Regulations (LDRs) for the downtown, completing a seven year effort to update zoning and land usage in the entire city. There are still some issues to be resolved in a "glitch bill" later on this year.
The biggest issue is the zoning for the site of Al Lang Field. Al Lang has carried a commercial zoning designation and that has carried over to the new LDRs. However, with the Devil Rays moving their spring training out of town in 2009, there is significant citizen concern about future uses for that site. Many people feel that the City would be better served by designating the Al Lang site with Park zoning. Others believe that a really special use could be found for the land that would offer unique benefits to the City.
The other big issue to be resolved is historic preservation efforts against the background of downtown redevelopment. The new LDRs provide some incentive to developers for historic preservation. However it is unclear that they are sufficient to actually accomplish much in the way of historic preservation as the incentives currently are written. Stay tuned.
And this week, Friday, August 31st, City Council Member Jamie Bennett (District 5) will be getting in the hot seat. Council Member Bennett is also running for re election this year.
Speaking of elections, there are primary elections in Districts 3 and 5 on September 11. Early voting is already underway. Voter turnout is expected to be dismally low. If you live in these districts and want the voice of the arts community to be heard, please be sure to vote in this important election.
And for some arts news, the Arts Center Member Show opens this Friday August 31st. I hope you will start the day by joining us at the Friday Morning Group. Hope to see you there.
Thursday, August 30, 2007
Wednesday, August 22, 2007
Three Jewels of St. Petersburg
Last Friday at the Friday Morning Group, we noted the passing of Mrs. Astor in New York and her remarks about the three jewels of New York City. We could recall that she named the Metropolitan Museum, and the New York Public Library, but could not recall the third.
This led to a discussion about the three jewels of St. Petersburg. There was widespread agreement about the first two jewels, the waterfront park system and the Dali Museum. After that, well...
The Florida Orchestra was mentioned as the third possible jewel. However, there was not agreement that the Orchestra was in a place that qualified as being called a jewel. There is certainly the potential, and I know many of us would like to be able to say it it the third jewel in St. Petersburg's crown. So ,let's hear it. What do you think the three jewels of St. Petersburg are?
We also talked about the Battle of the B3's at the Palladium. For those of you who did not attend, you really missed a show. The Palladium was sold out for this battle of Jazz vs Blues organists playing the venerable Hammond B3 organs. The good news for those of you who missed it is that this event will almost certainly be back next year, probably for more than one night. This was a terrific display of the musical talent in the Tampa Bay area.
We also talked about an art preservation project now going on in St. Petersburg. The Piano Exchange Building, formerly the Garden cafeteria, is going to be redeveloped. This building is on Second Street North in downtown St. Pete, across from the Bay Walk. The Garden cafeteria was once one of the jewels of the cafeteria culture in St. Petersburg. It was decorated in a garden motif including Florida garden scene murals on the walls.
As a condition of the approval of the site plan for redevelopment of this building, the developers agreed to make the murals available to anyone who wants to preserve them. There are several murals that are painted on wall boards that can simply be removed. However, the entire back wall of the building is a giant mural that appears to be painted directly into the concrete. The developers have agreed to make the wall available to anyone who wants to remove it. But it is BIG. At a minimum, the artwork will be photographically documented before the building is demolished. If you can provide any assistance in this project, please let me know.
See you this Friday.
This led to a discussion about the three jewels of St. Petersburg. There was widespread agreement about the first two jewels, the waterfront park system and the Dali Museum. After that, well...
The Florida Orchestra was mentioned as the third possible jewel. However, there was not agreement that the Orchestra was in a place that qualified as being called a jewel. There is certainly the potential, and I know many of us would like to be able to say it it the third jewel in St. Petersburg's crown. So ,let's hear it. What do you think the three jewels of St. Petersburg are?
We also talked about the Battle of the B3's at the Palladium. For those of you who did not attend, you really missed a show. The Palladium was sold out for this battle of Jazz vs Blues organists playing the venerable Hammond B3 organs. The good news for those of you who missed it is that this event will almost certainly be back next year, probably for more than one night. This was a terrific display of the musical talent in the Tampa Bay area.
We also talked about an art preservation project now going on in St. Petersburg. The Piano Exchange Building, formerly the Garden cafeteria, is going to be redeveloped. This building is on Second Street North in downtown St. Pete, across from the Bay Walk. The Garden cafeteria was once one of the jewels of the cafeteria culture in St. Petersburg. It was decorated in a garden motif including Florida garden scene murals on the walls.
As a condition of the approval of the site plan for redevelopment of this building, the developers agreed to make the murals available to anyone who wants to preserve them. There are several murals that are painted on wall boards that can simply be removed. However, the entire back wall of the building is a giant mural that appears to be painted directly into the concrete. The developers have agreed to make the wall available to anyone who wants to remove it. But it is BIG. At a minimum, the artwork will be photographically documented before the building is demolished. If you can provide any assistance in this project, please let me know.
See you this Friday.
Three Jewels of St. Petersburg
Last Friday at the Friday Morning Group, we noted the passing of Mrs. Astor in New York and her remarks about the three jewels of New York City. We could recall that she named the Metropolitan Museum, and the New York Public Library, but could not recall the third.
This led to a discussion about the three jewels of St. Petersburg. There was widespread agreement about the first two jewels, the waterfront park system and the Dali Museum. After that, well...
The Florida Orchestra was mentioned as the third possible jewel. However, there was not agreement that the Orchestra was in a place that qualified as being called a jewel. There is certainly the potential, and I know many of us would like to be able to say it it the third jewel in St. Petersburg's crown. So ,let's hear it. What do you think the three jewels of St. Petersburg are?
We also talked about the Battle of the B3's at the Palladium. For those of you who did not attend, you really missed a show. The Palladium was sold out for this battle of Jazz vs Blues organists playing the venerable Hammond B3 organs. The good news for those of you who missed it is that this event will almost certainly be back next year, probably for more than one night. This was a terrific display of the musical talent in the Tampa Bay area.
We also talked about an art preservation project now going on in St. Petersburg. The Piano Exchange Building, formerly the Garden cafeteria, is going to be redeveloped. This building is on Second Street North in downtown St. Pete, across from the Bay Walk. The Garden cafeteria was once one of the jewels of the cafeteria culture in St. Petersburg. It was decorated in a garden motif including Florida garden scene murals on the walls.
As a condition of the approval of the site plan for redevelopment of this building, the developers agreed to make the murals available to anyone who wants to preserve them. There are several murals that are painted on wall boards that can simply be removed. However, the entire back wall of the building is a giant mural that appears to be painted directly into the concrete. The developers have agreed to make the wall available to anyone who wants to remove it. But it is BIG. At a minimum, the artwork will be photographically documented before the building is demolished. If you can provide any assistance in this project, please let me know.
See you this Friday.
This led to a discussion about the three jewels of St. Petersburg. There was widespread agreement about the first two jewels, the waterfront park system and the Dali Museum. After that, well...
The Florida Orchestra was mentioned as the third possible jewel. However, there was not agreement that the Orchestra was in a place that qualified as being called a jewel. There is certainly the potential, and I know many of us would like to be able to say it it the third jewel in St. Petersburg's crown. So ,let's hear it. What do you think the three jewels of St. Petersburg are?
We also talked about the Battle of the B3's at the Palladium. For those of you who did not attend, you really missed a show. The Palladium was sold out for this battle of Jazz vs Blues organists playing the venerable Hammond B3 organs. The good news for those of you who missed it is that this event will almost certainly be back next year, probably for more than one night. This was a terrific display of the musical talent in the Tampa Bay area.
We also talked about an art preservation project now going on in St. Petersburg. The Piano Exchange Building, formerly the Garden cafeteria, is going to be redeveloped. This building is on Second Street North in downtown St. Pete, across from the Bay Walk. The Garden cafeteria was once one of the jewels of the cafeteria culture in St. Petersburg. It was decorated in a garden motif including Florida garden scene murals on the walls.
As a condition of the approval of the site plan for redevelopment of this building, the developers agreed to make the murals available to anyone who wants to preserve them. There are several murals that are painted on wall boards that can simply be removed. However, the entire back wall of the building is a giant mural that appears to be painted directly into the concrete. The developers have agreed to make the wall available to anyone who wants to remove it. But it is BIG. At a minimum, the artwork will be photographically documented before the building is demolished. If you can provide any assistance in this project, please let me know.
See you this Friday.
Thursday, August 16, 2007
Art of Guerrilla Tactics
The conversation at the Friday Morning Group last Friday ranged from "radical transparency" to guerrilla tactics and everything in between. No matter the topics, the conversation was brightened by the all too rare appearance of Carol Dameron.
The underlying topic that had us touch on these diverse subjects was the position of arts and culture in these tough financial times. We all have been feeling the effects of the property tax reform movement in Florida and its impact on local government funding for the arts. Now as signs continue to show the overall economy slipping, the art funding situation appears to be even more tenuous.
We discussed how people and institutions make values choices when allocating resources. The question we are continuously trying to answer is how to demonstrate the total value of arts and culture on the community. Where do arts and culture fit into this mix? What do we value and why do we value it? What impact does this have on our quality of life. And what does it say about us as a community?
We also touched on who our natural allies should be in this effort to upgrade the place of arts and culture on the values choices ladder. We even talked about good old Mazlow and his "hierarchy of needs". We talked about the creation of "Business Improvement Districts" and how incremental taxes within those districts can be used to provide additional city employees to aid visitors and residents within those districts. This has been used to great effect in Washington DC. There are a number of economies with this approach, because these "Business Improvement District" city employees are not police officers and therefore do not carry the high cost overhead of additional police.
We talked about the role of cities, that they exist to create human interactions. These interactions create possibilities which all serve to enhance the quality of life in our communities. But how to raise the visibility of the value of arts and culture within the clutter of everything else that is going on?
That is where the guerrilla tactics come in. Imagine a series of more or less spontaneous little artistic "interventions" going on all over town at unexpected times and places. Don't know what these interventions might look like? Me neither. But you all are creative. Think about it. How much fun could you have with it? How much would it add to the quality of life in the community? How much might it add to the value of arts and culture in the community?
Anybody feeling guerillaish today? How about joining us tomorrow at the Friday Morning Group and sharing your ideas? I look forward to seeing you.
The underlying topic that had us touch on these diverse subjects was the position of arts and culture in these tough financial times. We all have been feeling the effects of the property tax reform movement in Florida and its impact on local government funding for the arts. Now as signs continue to show the overall economy slipping, the art funding situation appears to be even more tenuous.
We discussed how people and institutions make values choices when allocating resources. The question we are continuously trying to answer is how to demonstrate the total value of arts and culture on the community. Where do arts and culture fit into this mix? What do we value and why do we value it? What impact does this have on our quality of life. And what does it say about us as a community?
We also touched on who our natural allies should be in this effort to upgrade the place of arts and culture on the values choices ladder. We even talked about good old Mazlow and his "hierarchy of needs". We talked about the creation of "Business Improvement Districts" and how incremental taxes within those districts can be used to provide additional city employees to aid visitors and residents within those districts. This has been used to great effect in Washington DC. There are a number of economies with this approach, because these "Business Improvement District" city employees are not police officers and therefore do not carry the high cost overhead of additional police.
We talked about the role of cities, that they exist to create human interactions. These interactions create possibilities which all serve to enhance the quality of life in our communities. But how to raise the visibility of the value of arts and culture within the clutter of everything else that is going on?
That is where the guerrilla tactics come in. Imagine a series of more or less spontaneous little artistic "interventions" going on all over town at unexpected times and places. Don't know what these interventions might look like? Me neither. But you all are creative. Think about it. How much fun could you have with it? How much would it add to the quality of life in the community? How much might it add to the value of arts and culture in the community?
Anybody feeling guerillaish today? How about joining us tomorrow at the Friday Morning Group and sharing your ideas? I look forward to seeing you.
Wednesday, August 15, 2007
St. Pete Council Money Race - PrePrimary
The September St. Petersburg City Council Primary Election date is rapidly approaching. As it does, the money race is starting to get hot too. Not surprisingly, the hottest part of the track in the money race is the crowded field for the open District 3 seat being vacated by Bill Foster. Stay tuned for the real surprise here, however.
In the contest for the other open seat, Renee Flower's District 7, the first reporting period leader, Gershom Faulkner's torrid fundraising pace slowed remarkably. The most recent reporting period is a short period from July 1 through August 3rd. Faulkner has now reported raising a total of $12,598. However only $1,575 was raised in the most recent period. and Faulkner has spent most of the money already, having spent $11,933.
Faulkner's only opponent, Wengay Newton is not in any better shape financially. Newton has reported raising only $2,900 so far and has spent $2,100. Faulkner's fundraising pace is expected to pick up. His bipartisan support is starting to kick in. At a recent fundraising event hosted by a high profile financial services executive, it was announced that Faulkner was receiving support from an unlikely confluence of sources that will ensure that he will have the funds necessary to compete vigorously for this seat. Stay tuned.
The District 1 seat is currently held by Herb Poslon, who was appointed to fill State Representative Rick Kriseman's seat. Polson has picked up his fundraising pace dramatically. Polson now reports raising a total of $14,455, with nearly $11,000 raised in July. Polson has been a relative piker when it comes to spending that money, having expended only $2,503 to date. His only opponent, Bob Kersteen has raised only $2,500 and has spent $1,600. Looks like Polson is in good shape here.
Incumbent Jamie Bennett's fundraising continues to lag in his bid for reelection to the District 5 seat. Bennett who eschewed raising money when it was uncertain he would be opposed, has raised only $3,300 so far. However, neither of his opponents have demonstrated any fundraising prowess to date. Between them they have only raised about $1,100 and have spent about half of that. Jamie needs to pick up the pace to avoid any nasty surprises, however.
That brings us back to the District 3 donnybrook. The big surprise here is that Ed Montanari is not leading the fund raising in this district. Montanari, who ran Bill Foster's campaign last cycle, is raising serious money, having raised $12,695 to date. However, Bill Dudley, who ran against Foster 4 years ago, is leading the money race for this seat. Dudley raised $16,705 in July bringing his total to $17,524. Cathy Harrelson is trailing the field here, having raised a total of $7,772 so far.
Montanari is leading this district in expenditures so far as the campaign signs springing up around town would seem to indicate. Montanari has reported spending nearly $7,000 to date. leaving only about $5,500 on hand. The Mallard Group continues to be a big drain on the Montanari campaign funds, raking in over $2,300 in July alone. Signs costs for Montanari were over $3,100.
Dudley has spent nearly $5,000 to date, almost all of it in July. Dudley has also spent heavily on signs, about $2,600 in July. He also spent nearly $700 on an ad in the St. Pete Times and another $500 plus on T shirts. Cathy Harrelson , as behooves a financial manager, has spent the least so far. Harrelson's total expenditures are just $3,800. The vast majority of her spending has been on campaign literature and signs.
The District 3 race will be by far the more competitive of the two primary races. Coach Dudley seems to be in very good shape with over $12,000 in the bank and signs proliferating throughout the district. Montanari's spending on the Mallard Group will be showing up in a mailbox near you soon. But he better raise more than the $5,000 he has on hand to pay for the printing and the mailing. If Harrelson wants to get into the general election, she is going to need to pick up her pace in a big hurry.
In the contest for the other open seat, Renee Flower's District 7, the first reporting period leader, Gershom Faulkner's torrid fundraising pace slowed remarkably. The most recent reporting period is a short period from July 1 through August 3rd. Faulkner has now reported raising a total of $12,598. However only $1,575 was raised in the most recent period. and Faulkner has spent most of the money already, having spent $11,933.
Faulkner's only opponent, Wengay Newton is not in any better shape financially. Newton has reported raising only $2,900 so far and has spent $2,100. Faulkner's fundraising pace is expected to pick up. His bipartisan support is starting to kick in. At a recent fundraising event hosted by a high profile financial services executive, it was announced that Faulkner was receiving support from an unlikely confluence of sources that will ensure that he will have the funds necessary to compete vigorously for this seat. Stay tuned.
The District 1 seat is currently held by Herb Poslon, who was appointed to fill State Representative Rick Kriseman's seat. Polson has picked up his fundraising pace dramatically. Polson now reports raising a total of $14,455, with nearly $11,000 raised in July. Polson has been a relative piker when it comes to spending that money, having expended only $2,503 to date. His only opponent, Bob Kersteen has raised only $2,500 and has spent $1,600. Looks like Polson is in good shape here.
Incumbent Jamie Bennett's fundraising continues to lag in his bid for reelection to the District 5 seat. Bennett who eschewed raising money when it was uncertain he would be opposed, has raised only $3,300 so far. However, neither of his opponents have demonstrated any fundraising prowess to date. Between them they have only raised about $1,100 and have spent about half of that. Jamie needs to pick up the pace to avoid any nasty surprises, however.
That brings us back to the District 3 donnybrook. The big surprise here is that Ed Montanari is not leading the fund raising in this district. Montanari, who ran Bill Foster's campaign last cycle, is raising serious money, having raised $12,695 to date. However, Bill Dudley, who ran against Foster 4 years ago, is leading the money race for this seat. Dudley raised $16,705 in July bringing his total to $17,524. Cathy Harrelson is trailing the field here, having raised a total of $7,772 so far.
Montanari is leading this district in expenditures so far as the campaign signs springing up around town would seem to indicate. Montanari has reported spending nearly $7,000 to date. leaving only about $5,500 on hand. The Mallard Group continues to be a big drain on the Montanari campaign funds, raking in over $2,300 in July alone. Signs costs for Montanari were over $3,100.
Dudley has spent nearly $5,000 to date, almost all of it in July. Dudley has also spent heavily on signs, about $2,600 in July. He also spent nearly $700 on an ad in the St. Pete Times and another $500 plus on T shirts. Cathy Harrelson , as behooves a financial manager, has spent the least so far. Harrelson's total expenditures are just $3,800. The vast majority of her spending has been on campaign literature and signs.
The District 3 race will be by far the more competitive of the two primary races. Coach Dudley seems to be in very good shape with over $12,000 in the bank and signs proliferating throughout the district. Montanari's spending on the Mallard Group will be showing up in a mailbox near you soon. But he better raise more than the $5,000 he has on hand to pay for the printing and the mailing. If Harrelson wants to get into the general election, she is going to need to pick up her pace in a big hurry.
Wednesday, August 8, 2007
(W)EDUcational Discussion
We had a pretty good crowd last Friday morning to hear Joyce Cotton, the Director of Marketing and Community Partnerships at WEDU. Joyce has been in television for 31 years (really Joyce, you can't be that old) and at WEDU for six years. She had a lot to share with us about activities at WEDU that are largely unknown to a lot of people, myself included.
As we were doing our customary self introductions, Bill Moriarity apprised us of the sad news that Artists Gallery Royale is closing at the end of this month. Bill, you were not the captain of the Titanic. Honest.
We got through the rest of the introductions without any other really sad news. Joyce told us about several programs that she is engaged in on behalf of WEDU, but I am going to cover a couple of the highlights. I encourage you to visit the WEDU web site at WEDU.ORG .
The Ready to Learn Program is an extension of WEDU's children's programming. The station works with Head Start programs, schools, Girl Scouts or whoever might be interested in participating in special events with WEDU. One of the most successful of these is Angelina's Ballerina held at Ruth Eckerd Hall during the holiday season. This event typically sells out with over 300 children participating.
There are also the WEDU Be More Awards. This is a program where WEDU partners with non profit organizations to honor particularly noteworthy non profits. Last year WEDU sent out 700 nomination invitations, receiving 82 back. There was a luncheon judging event to select the winners. WEDU will be hosting their Be More Awards Workshop at their studios on September 19. Check it out on the WEDU web site.
We also discussed WEDU's local programming. Tom and Joyce provided us with DVDs of The Gulf Coast Journal which will be entering its fifth season this year. This is a program produced by WEDU featuring former NBC newsman Jack Perkins and Sarasota County. You can watch it on the WEDU web site here. It would be tremendous if we could secure funding for a similar program for Pinellas or the Tampa Bay area.
I want to close by reminding everyone that Herb Snitzer will be giving his "formal" talk on his work at the Museum of Fine Arts this Sunday, August 12th at 3:00 PM. I hope to see you all on both Friday morning and on Sunday afternoon.
As we were doing our customary self introductions, Bill Moriarity apprised us of the sad news that Artists Gallery Royale is closing at the end of this month. Bill, you were not the captain of the Titanic. Honest.
We got through the rest of the introductions without any other really sad news. Joyce told us about several programs that she is engaged in on behalf of WEDU, but I am going to cover a couple of the highlights. I encourage you to visit the WEDU web site at WEDU.ORG .
The Ready to Learn Program is an extension of WEDU's children's programming. The station works with Head Start programs, schools, Girl Scouts or whoever might be interested in participating in special events with WEDU. One of the most successful of these is Angelina's Ballerina held at Ruth Eckerd Hall during the holiday season. This event typically sells out with over 300 children participating.
There are also the WEDU Be More Awards. This is a program where WEDU partners with non profit organizations to honor particularly noteworthy non profits. Last year WEDU sent out 700 nomination invitations, receiving 82 back. There was a luncheon judging event to select the winners. WEDU will be hosting their Be More Awards Workshop at their studios on September 19. Check it out on the WEDU web site.
We also discussed WEDU's local programming. Tom and Joyce provided us with DVDs of The Gulf Coast Journal which will be entering its fifth season this year. This is a program produced by WEDU featuring former NBC newsman Jack Perkins and Sarasota County. You can watch it on the WEDU web site here. It would be tremendous if we could secure funding for a similar program for Pinellas or the Tampa Bay area.
I want to close by reminding everyone that Herb Snitzer will be giving his "formal" talk on his work at the Museum of Fine Arts this Sunday, August 12th at 3:00 PM. I hope to see you all on both Friday morning and on Sunday afternoon.
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