Oh, I don't see Lisa Oh, hi Lisa And we are now streaming and I'm going to promote a couple more people and We'll see if Nathan joins Hey Jessica Well, great at this point I will kick off our meeting so good afternoon everyone and welcome to the August 1st Art and Public Places Committee meeting pursuant to government code section 54953 E and the recommendation of the health officer of Sonoma County Art and Public Places Committee members will be participating via zoom webinar Members of the public can participate in the meeting via zoom And I will ask our recording secretary to give more information about how members of the public can participate So members of the public can participate If participating via zoom by using the raised hand feature if you are calling in please press star 9 And you will be prompted to on your phone and you'll be able to share your comments with the committee. Thank you Great. Thank you And if we can take a roll call for all committee members on our meeting, thanks Absolutely member Sayers We can't hear you if you could just unmute for me, please Yeah, oh, thank you so much member pointys I'm here. Thanks vice chair Jones Carter here chair keifer present let the record reflect that Um The members are present with the exception of member Ed Steerian Baumgartner and Nathanson all right, uh, I Next like to move to public comment This is a time when any person may address matters not listed on the agenda But are within the subject matter of the jurisdiction Public may comment on agenda items when that item is called each speaker is allowed three minutes Uh, I lean at this moment. Do we have any public comments for our meeting today? We do not we have no voicemails emails nor are there any hands raised at this time? great Next I will move to item four approval of minutes We have all committee members should have received meeting minutes for the june 6 2022 meeting I would I'm looking for a motion to Accept these meeting minutes Anyone like to make a motion? I like to motion to approve Minutes as submitted Great. Thank you Can I get a second? I'll have to be Bob because I wasn't there I'll second Thank you All right now move Chair keifer because we um, we have to have half at least half of The members of the committee voting. Um, we don't have enough individuals at this point. Um, who are present I believe. Oh, actually Nathan has just joined us. So, um, I apologize He's got proceed Hi, Nathan. Great time for you joining us. We are currently reviewing the meeting minutes for the june 6 2022 meeting We have a motion on the table To approve to approve the meeting minutes as submitted. Uh, and Oh, you're currently on mute, but I'll second that motion Great. Well, sorry. No, we have a second. You already have a second. Yeah, we just need a vote. Thank you Okay, um, so I will go ahead and take the roll. I apologize for the confusion. Uh, member esterian if Yes, if you could just unmute yourself for a second and let us know if you um, and you're voting in the affirmative to pass the, um, minutes as Submitted I do Okay, great. Um, and member point is Yes, perfect. Thanks, uh, vice chair chair jones carter I wasn't there. Oh, I'm so sorry. Um, but melanie you you would abstain as the proper I abstain And uh member sayers Yes Chair keeper Yes the Item passes with, uh four eyes Great. Thank you All right, uh moving on to our scheduled items at number five on the agenda Before we kick off this item. I would just like to remind committee members that when we do Ask for a motion on the table. It is a starting point for a discussion for a conversation Uh, so it is really useful opportunity for committee members to speak openly About concerns and discussion of why we are voting in a certain way. Um, just want to kick Preface our our next discussion With that little caveat. So, uh item five point one We are returning to our annual work plan discussion. This is part three in our discussion And tara thompson is going to continue our Discussion about the annual work plan process and present a proposed work plan for the fiscal year Our recommended action is to approve Again, this is a recommended action. This is just a starting point. So I would like us to have Um, a healthy discussion about if we have any concerns before adopting Or before moving forward. This is not, um A direction or sorry necessarily that we need to follow this recommendation. It is an opening So, uh just a procedural, um Item that's how we we need to have our discussion kicked off. So thanks everyone. Uh I will turn it over to tara Great. Thank you. Hello everyone. Uh chair q It's of the committee. Um, I'll go ahead and share my screen to lead us through this Conversation, uh, which is a continuation of The Two other conversations we've had about our annual work planning process. Can everyone see the screen? Okay So, um, just to refresh your memory and to provide A little bit of, um Of an update as well. Sorry. Hold on. Let me make my screen not so insanely large. Oops. Did that just take it out of Did it take it out of the slideshow mode? It took it out of presentation mode. Yes. Okay. Let me I'll go back then. Okay. So, um, this is a The same kind of implementation status or progress report of our current year or or I should say our Last year when I presented this Previously we were still in the fiscal year 21 22 Um, and so now that that fiscal year has ended as of june 30 I have uh updated the to date A dollar amounts on how we progressed through implementing our first full year of our strategic plan So the update to this document since last time Just has, um slightly different to date amounts for some of the items because, um This is now, uh, you know, the full fiscal year has concluded Uh, so again, this was a kind of a tool to use in um looking at how Far we've gotten in implementing our current strategic plan in how our implementation plan called for us to proceed with that And it was slow slow going. We definitely did not get through everything But we made a lot of progress in a lot of areas and so, um, there are some notes there as well as a to date Amounts that we have spent on some of these Strategies or tactics um I'll just keep moving through happy to answer any questions though as they come up So go ahead and just raise your hand if there's something that you'd like to chime in with And again refresher that this is the kind of hand drawn work areas work map That we made up to show the different areas Not only of the public art program, but also the other areas that kind of fall under The arts and culture managers, uh oversight. So we have event permitting as well as the out there santa rosa program No other changes have been made since since I last shared this Again a refresher showing our last four years of public art Contributions our revenue and expenditures and our fund balance So no changes to this since the last Court and then this is a new slide that I want to spend most of our time talking about today In addition to looking at the proposed annual work plan for this new year While while going through this process. I found it helpful to start thinking about the two entities that are really at play here and and then how we overlap in our work together The public art program And art and public places committee are really two separate Entities in that the program has certain roles and responsibilities And our public places committee has certain roles and responsibilities and and during the process of trying to figure out where it makes the most sense for There's to be more involved to take over certain parts of our strategic plans certain parts of the work plan in general um It just kind of felt helpful to To create a diagram that visually showed where things live and where the collaborations happen and where the Kind of responsibilities lie and then where we share responsibilities So under the public art program we have in general public art projects This includes the management of them partnerships related to them and the maintenance and conservation of them But there are collection projects meaning public art projects that the committee Has a role in approving that we've commissioned that the committee has commissioned But it also includes non-collection things so place making things Partnership things things that have to do with out there Santa Rosa potentially that or or just have separate funding That really don't come through our public places committee But those are so considered public art projects Then we have the private development requirements That's the 1% for art The public art program manages that the or our ordinance Specifically says that developers can come to art and public places committee for input, but it is not required And then we have cultural events like live at Juilliard We have our rotating exhibits at our community centers. We have the preparation of our budget We have the website social media pr and marketing related to the program Out there Santa Rosa is now a component of the program and then we have policy involvement such as general plan update and and and other Policy related things that are kind of interdepartmental In our the kind of art and public places committee sphere we have Community engagement as its own broad category Talking about the formation of an advisory board Partnerships the better better use of existing communication tools presence at community events Policies and procedures meaning the committee is responsible for reviewing revising and recommending Policies and procedures as they relate to the public art program Policy development or sorry, excuse me project development Which includes an audit of our current processes and our project considerations such as what types of things should we be considering when we are starting a new project? And then project selection the selection criteria the selection panel and process And that they are in public places committee approves Those projects Those projects And then we have the the collaborative area the things in purple in the middle are the things that we really work on collaboratively And potentially equally We have the preparation of this annual work plan We have community engagement specifically for projects, which is shared amongst the public art program and the committee And a project evaluation where we're looking back at past projects and evaluating how they went and what can be improved So that's um There's there's probably lots of little nuances there where there might be questions or how does it fit in there? But this to me was a a start to visually represent The kind of question that kept coming up is what we know who What where where does it make most sense for the committee to be involved in certain aspects of the program and vice versa? So So then this leads us to our draft and what is proposed today Our draft annual work plan for this new year 2022 to 2023 and so this really is A collaborative effort as you can see I've added a column here. This is the same format as what we used in our last Work plan. However, I've added A couple columns. So the who column It has the same color scheme has that past diagram to show who is kind of the Party for that item in our strategy in this implementation plan. I'm sorry in this work plan so Blue is the art and public places committee orange is the public art program In the who column And then it captures the same this first item item number one is the strategic plan implementation And so it captures the same categories That that we see that we saw last year in our work plan And it has a planned column and a proposed column meaning That the planned column was what we anticipated and what was in our strategic plan That's what we anticipated these items costing for this year's implementation The proposed plan takes into account the fact that we did not get to everything last year That was called for in our implementation plan. And so there are carryover costs essentially There are also one there's also one item where I'm recommending that we don't Uh, implement it this year given all of the other things that we have to do So you'll see a zero in that in that row There's a couple asterisks is there Really to indicate some notes like let's postpone till next year Let's hold certain funds for emergency response as we've seen in the last few years that is needed And then let's use some funds for a specific project that has come to our attention needing funding So this is the first This is the first part of our strategic Of our work plan, which is number one strategic plan implementation There are still other items on our list our continuing projects or are also a part of our annual work plan So the continuing projects are the artists in the general plan update process Of partnership, which we're working with with the planning team and the Santa Rosa Forward team and kimsum creative We still have unum cordel square ongoing We still have our ongoing maintenance and conservation the asawa panels and depot park are still projects that are in some way ongoing or have a A completion date that will take us To some to some date in the fiscal year 2023 22 23 Then we have item number three, which are our new potential projects These um are there's there's well, there's two of them right now and there may be others But these are the two that we are aware of currently, which is the highway 101 pedestrian over crossing And there is a fire station being built in fountain grove, which had separate funding. No funding is needed for this But it will be a project. We're being asked to manage as the public art program So, um, I'm sure there's lots of questions But I'll just remind you that the recommended action to kick off our discussion will be to approve this annual work plan But I'm happy to answer any questions or have a discussion about what's being proposed And I can share my screen again at any point If we need to refer to anything Great. Thank you Tara Um, I would appreciate if you put the slide back up with the uh Sorry at the excel table with the proposed and projected Our plans there we go this one Thank you. Yes. Actually, you know what I'm going to do? I'm going to share a different format of it so we can see it all on one page Great. Stand by for that. Okay. Is that visible? Yes. Okay. Thank you Great Before we kick off our conversation, could I get a motion on the table to um approve the strategic plan and um Well, first of all, I would recommend if there are any specific questions But if there are no questions, we can go right into discussion after there's a motion on the table But if there are questions, we can do that before Looks like we have a few questions. So we'll go with that first. Hi, Lisa. Go ahead Yes, I have a the question, uh, that was regarding The create public art tool kits and that one is we have the zero and the asterisk So that one was put is going to be postponed and exactly what was Did we discuss I know we were discussing it that I that I can remember but we were we discussing specifically what was included in those tool kits We have not identified all the components that would be a part of that project, but the intention is to have um A digital online tool kit as well as a printed version That really um would help community members and local artists Do their own projects in the community. So it would be um kind of a step by step process on How to do a public art project in your neighborhood or what resources are there available if you're looking for funding um What permits might you need for a block party where you want to have some kind of art activity? What kind of support and infrastructure can the city provide to to um encourage Uh these types of things it would it would really just be mainly information but kind of like a one but one-stop shop to Let people know that there's a way that they can do a project on their own. They don't have to wait for us to do it No, perfect. Thank you Tara Melanie. Okay, and so Because I recall that that was pretty high on our strategic plan list is the reason to Not try and do it this week because of this year because of next year because the resources Yeah, it's mainly has to do with um kind of our staff resources um It's hard exactly to know in what order To implement the recommendations that we have before us um the first year of the strategic plan called for us Doing a public art audit, which we are just now starting and so that The idea was that that would be completed before we created the public art toolkits And so if we haven't even completed that yet then pushing off the toolkits till next year seems the most logical since that that's following the recommendations of the strategic plan Is that the only way that we could do it? No, but there's a lot of other things that we want to complete this This year that were called for last year. Um, and so to make it more possible for our limited team to Our small team small but mighty team to do all of these things we have to prioritize Okay For clarification. Is that why the public art audit? Planned budget number was doubled for the proposed for this year Right because it was it was anticipated it would take two or three years to really complete that process. Um And we anticipated the first year cost would be 25,000 and that would have been spent last year but it wasn't and so There we also budgeted another 25,000 for this year. So that's why where the 50,000 comes from is those two year year's budgets combined Okay So I'll just since you don't have to call on me so If if you're sorry you're saying this the public art audit. It's two to three years and then the art The toolkit wouldn't be Completed until after the audit. So are you saying then? No, sorry. That's not quite right. Yeah. So, okay I mean what what the strategic plan called for is to Do the public art audit in the first full year of our strategic plan? It called for for starting it. I should say it didn't call to complete it It just said to start it right and then we anticipated I think there's two years worth of budget budgeted. So I think it was thinking it was a two-year project $25,000 each year And then the the toolkits was in the second year of our implementation Um, not necessarily with any kind of caveat that said do this after the audit is complete But it it's just more about how many projects we can take on at one time With this with the staff that we have that's not to say that we can't That the plan also recognized the need to outsource more work So each year we have a line item to continue to work with additional contractors to expand what we're able to do So that doesn't mean that we can't continue to use that as an approach to get get Our high priority items completed faster But it you know, it's just yeah, so if there's a desire to make sure that we're doing public art toolkits this year This plan can be adjusted to reflect that It's just more it's just a matter of recognizing that there's there are some limitations with how much we can Um Take on in one year right I know I just um, I just remember that you know, we had a lot of discussion about the Ease of the application process and all that stuff and it was really tied to the toolkit. So it seemed like a Something that was a high priority For the community. So I would like to see it You know not taken off the table completely At least put the money there and if it doesn't happen You know, we can address that but I hate to see it gone all together Yeah, understood. Yeah, it would I think that's totally other Approach because as we know this is a work plan. It is something we're going to strive towards But as we saw for this year, we can see what what Um, but you know, you can't it's it was ambitious It's a nice way to say it And that uh, we may have things that roll over year to year And maybe it's sorry. I'm just talking so maybe it's you know, we we just outsource it But we take some funds from something else to Try and bolster that line item to get it completed You know, we have $50,000 for the grants for art Organizations and we're holding it for emergency response funds. Maybe we take some of that money and put it into that category So then we can at least get started on it. Yeah Because I just it just reminded me when we when we did the mural and there were these groups there and they didn't even know about Our organization and how to get a grant and You know, that's the first step Yeah, I would say that a lot of the things That also touch on what you're saying are still on our radar and we're still working towards in other ways So for instance, I think they're the committee Can begin I think it's the project development task force that has on their kind of to-do list so to speak An audit of our existing processes for projects And how how artists apply and what our process is so that we can better understand where the Roblox are for artists and how we can improve our process and then how we can streamline and create a kind of Quick well, maybe you don't need all of the permits you think you need or maybe you don't need The approvals you think you need and and then that information would actually go into the toolkit so some of the information we need to do to create a Really functional toolkit is to do some of that internal auditing of our own processes So that can still be happening And then I think a lot of the work that we're trying to do to Get the word out to the community to have a better website presence How we're incorporating the public art program into the out there santa rosa website All of those things help with the awareness as well. So there's a variety of approaches.  Oh, yeah, I thanks tar. I know there's a lot on here And there needs to be a lot of participation and a lot of work and stuff But I do You know agree with melanie. It's the toolkit is something that is a great conversation starter With a lot of organizations and it's something to show What is possible and because the conversation it's it's it's really hard. I have had quite a few conversations and On where and how they can go because it's just this verbal talking back and forth and when you're working with the artists, they are Like myself. I appreciate visual Um Whether it be a website or whatever it may be but that's you know, just to tell someone who doesn't have time check this out This is who we are. This is what we are. This is what we are And here's a list of how we can help how we can assist and um So that that's just my ideas, but I I understand where you're coming from too because we do have You know, there is a lot on here that Is going on and what we're trying to take care of person uh question Looking at the who column We don't have a an assignment for who would be working on this the Public art tool kits is that an assumption that it would be a shared responsibility between art and public places and the public art program No, I left that off because it was being proposed not to try to accomplish in this next year So I didn't assign it. Um, I think that it would be shared because I feel like Well, yeah, I think it would be shared I think that the bulk of the work preparing them would be the public art programs responsibility, but I think that the um The community engagement aspects to it sharing it once it's complete And then the kind of policy and procedural review that needs to happen to go into creating them Falls more on the committee I would I would agree with that. Okay. Thank you. Yeah Any other questions and then we should get a motion on the table to have continued discussion um, I had one other question regarding the doubling of the budget for partnering with oce Just a reminder of that acronym would be helpful. Oh, yeah, sorry. That's the office of community engagement It's the department here with within the city um And the reason that it's doubled is we actually have started a partnership program with them that um, Jessica Can share a little bit about uh during the project updates But the money won't be it wasn't expended last year. So It's rolling over Thanks for the clarification I don't know where we are and when it would be appropriate, but it seems like there's a Overwhelming sense that the public art toolkit is a very important Uh, not only resource with marketing tool and everything else.  Yeah, I hear I hear that I think that Melanie's suggestion of going ahead and putting a budget there and then trying to find Some outs some of the funds we would be using for outsourcing or other Line items in this budget get allocated to it so that we can be sure we're hiring Um, some some contractors to help us with that. I can also share that our Our plan was to have it be Supported by an internship program We were hoping to get one or two interns from Sonoma state this year and that hasn't material materialized yet. So That has also created a little bit of a delay there. That doesn't mean there aren't other ways to do it But that had been our initial hope So I I think during the discussion I welcome committee members sharing their thoughts on adding it back into this annual work plan And and having that be a priority for for us. I mean that that kind of feedback is helpful. So Yep, Melanie Is the public art program have a funding line? Or is it from Where where's the money come from the public art program this? Yeah, it's the same. It's the same. It's all the same so the public art program Is essentially everything that's on this list. It's just a matter of who Who in in the way that that other screen that other diagram kind of divided up roles and responsibilities It's there's no two separate funding sources or Or budgets. It's all one. It's more about who's responsible Mm-hmm and refresh me. Who who's who who's in charge of the public art program? Me that's what I thought. Okay Okay, the structure I yeah, I guess I could have included a Organizational chart but the structure Is that I'm the city's arts and culture manager? So I oversee the public art program as well as all of those other things on that hand drawn chart Mm-hmm, right and and that we have there are no other full-time staff for the public art program Just me we have of course the wonderful jessica rasmussen on this call who's hired as a contractor to support the program And we also have a part-time Permits assistant as well Who also spends time on live at juliar brice dow Williamson? Those are that that's our mighty team We are within the economic development division of the planning and economic development department So we have the general oversight and support of our economic development manager, right the de la rosa and we have team collaborations with our With rafael revero who's our economic development specialists and we have administrative support from our admin secretary and our recording secretary For this meeting eileen cleary. So we we we have support We're in a structure that supports us and we're very grateful for that, but it's a very small Program in considering all of the work we want to do How do we get more staff? I don't have an answer for you No, i'm serious because we i'm i really am if we have you know a real aggressive agenda for the strategic plan And we don't have the resources to get it done. How do we how do we make that happen? I mean Because I think didn't the jessica's position came from Something a couple of years ago that we voted on Is that correct? No, not necessarily we we started including um So we had to change how we budgeted for jessica's position because she originally was a temp employee When we were in the recon parks department. Um, and now she's hired as a contractor So there's just a change in in how that's categorized.  It's srtba a funds um Because of our oversight over that project as well program as well But yeah, I mean I think to make the case for more funding for staff It's a hard sell right now the environment of the city and the overall budget is of kind of conservation and getting back to core services and We have tried to get more full-time staff positions added to support both the special event position and the arts Specialist position as regular employees and we have not had any luck yet, but we are continuing to push for it Okay Lisa Yes, hi tar. So what can we do to help can we Because i'm having conversations like i'm trying as much as I can to go out and have conversations with people who we are What we are But I really think this toolkit would be great as a conversation You know, not only as a conversation started, but something to keep going. It's something tangible And visual that someone can really examine and see what's possible and um So my and I know I'm kind of repeating myself about it But so and I'd like to get this done and I know there's you know a lot of constrict there's There's a lot of hurdles that you need to you know jump jump over and stuff So I'm just went what as a committee members and stuff since this is such an important thing that we feel like we need What can we do to participate to get this going? I think that the The development Project development task force. So I think that's christin and Nathan Could work and any other committee members that want to work on this could really help by kick starting off the review of our current process for project To identify where some of our roadblocks are What could be streamlined and what could make its way into the final toolkit That's some of like I said the the kind of background work or the research and um kind of Desk desk research that needs to happen to get us to a stronger place of putting together recommendations or putting together the resources That would go into the Okay toolkit. I also think if there's You know kind of ties into some policy review Because if there are things that are called for that need to be adjusted or need to be updated That then would trigger or need a policy revision then we would need to start working on policy revisions in order to make those Effective right so it's like if our policy says we have to do a project one way But we really want to start doing projects another way We ultimately will need to make policy changes to make sure that we're reflecting how we really want to do projects Okay, so it's that kind of work that I think it's helpful to get us headed in the direction of the toolkits um I think that then it's really a matter of looking at our strategic plan or or sorry looking at Going back to my screen looking at the annual plan that's proposed And looking at okay What what should we how should we reorganize this a little bit? What what do you want us to be our highest priorities? how can we kind of You know Reconcile that with some of the other priorities that we feel are needed Like how do we come to a place where we know what the committee's highest priorities are so that we can make sure that those are getting Attention, I think that that would be most helpful Okay, okay, great. Um, and then Nathan either one of you if you could please Reach out to me or I can reach out to either one of you pristen and if you want to delegate anything to me, please We'll get this Thank you. Yeah. Um, Jessica. Sorry. Did you want to add something and then I'll go to Nathan? Yeah, um, I just I want to just add into the conversation that it It seems like the main prerogative of the committee is to really, you know Lisa you're talking about conversation starters and community engagement and stuff um, and I just want to remember that the toolkits are sort of For a select group of people that really want to do projects So we can also keep in mind that we really want to do public engagement around stuff Our projects that we're already doing so that's A big part of it too So when we bring up this discussion stuff, I I should raise my hand. Um Is there like these toolkits and for more information Can I know there are four organizations and stuff that we're giving and we're having these conversations with Who want to do projects and stuff but Can we also have you know what? Instead of me asking right now This is something that I'll have to bounce back and forth off with some other community members on what's possible what we can have for these, you know for just artists and Organizations and ever and other individuals and stuff and I Instead of talking it on here and going on forever I think it probably would be smart of just to bouncing it off other other members at a different time so Thanks Lisa Nathan sorry I know your hand was up for a while Oh, yeah, um, I I think that I I'm not entirely clear on the level of involvement Of the city with that creative Sonoma arts surround program, but I think that's a very helpful kind of model for Creating a forum for Artists to make proposals with funding that's already attached where things can you know kind of develop fairly quickly And uh, yeah, I think that's exciting and maybe a template for A way to address some of the concerns that are being raised Yeah, thank you. That's a good point I think that that's what the way I would kind of categorize that project and that partnership or collaboration with creative Sonoma Is not necessarily directly related to the toolkits, but it accomplishes something similar to the toolkits, which is to make projects more accessible and to make funding more accessible to people and so another way that the public art program and the art public places committee can can more Can quickly and with less hoops Red less red tape attached fund projects for that local artists want to do is to partner With nonprofits to partner with other agencies that that allow us to Um put out funds and say you tell us what you want to do We'll fund it, but it doesn't have to go through all of the red tape or all of the Kind of commission process that the public art program usually uses when we're putting out a call for artists So again different different approach than the toolkit the toolkits are meant for Community members artists or non artists to do art projects in their neighborhood in their hometown, right? They're they're meant for people who who where where there there isn't necessarily funding coming from the city There could be but there isn't necessarily funding, but how you would accomplish something that you want to do And uh and and then funding projects like art surround allows us to Really tear down some of those restrictions that we have related to when we do a call for artists It's a different say similar goals different approaches. Yeah Melanie um so Down here for commissions and grants to artists The $50,000 is this entire $50,000 earmarked for um the highway 101 over crossing project That that's what is being kind of recommended in this work plan since we have been asked to fund part of that project Um, but that is not something that's been approved. There's been no action taken on that yet. Okay, because we we Are we did we get to participate in that I can't remember we saw their drawing, but I I thought you know, we were like We didn't have any say so in anything so Well, are we giving them our money? I'm sorry No, the status of that would be the situation there is that there's a desire from the community to have art incorporated into that bridge The bridge design is complete So there were uh locations identified as possible sites for art on that bridge it and so at the at the committee's kind of Approval which I think everyone was supportive of when it was discussed back in april Was that if the committee's Approving we would move forward with doing a call for artists to get art projects incorporated into the bridge But it needs funding So the next step was really to look at the annual work plan to say where could we get How could we allocate funds in our work plan? Towards this project and so that that was that was a solution Was to dedicate those funds that were called for for other projects to that project Those are great questions and great great Conversations. So thank you everybody. I think at this point if there's no other questions then just getting a motion on the table Uh, and and if someone wants to make a motion that incorporates any changes you want to see that's also an opportunity You don't have to just straight up make the motion. That's recommended Before we go to making a motion, I would like to ask if there were any public comments received for this item Eileen, do we have any Uh, I apologize. I was on mute. Um, we have no public comments for this item Great. Thank you Melanie did you No, I was going to make a motion. Oh great. Okay Um, I'd like to make a motion that we Approve the strategic plan With revision to the art tool kits Funding that for this year and looking at The amount of money that we set aside for the highway 101 over crossing project So just to clarify you said strategic plan. I know you meant a work plan because I say the same thing interchangeably No, I just says here strategic plan implementations. So, sorry. I know. No, that's okay The whole work the whole the whole work plan. Um, yeah is what you're referring to and and so To add the funding for the tool kits in 22 23 in this in this year And then to look at the funds what what do you mean by I'm we just want to clarify what we're going to we're going to increase the um art tool kits Line item. Where's the money going to come from? Got it. I understand. So essentially the tool kits Can be funded. So if you look at our other Hold on. I can't let me get my um Let me share my screen again Go back to my Sorry, hold on a second. So this slide shows our fund balance essentially So we have adequate balance to essentially add things to this year's budget if we want We don't necessarily need to take away from anywhere. It's just more a matter of prioritizing where we want to spend our limited staff time Okay All right, and in addition Tara We we can look at um some as our tbi funds that align With it and would serve dual purposes Right. Yeah, we have flexibility there. So I wouldn't that's not the constraint, you know, it's like the constraint really is um How much we can get done in a year? So it's like, okay We know we need to hire more consultants more contractors to help us implement these projects Then we need to beef up that budget for outsource work You know, it's like what do we need to do to make it so that we can actually implement the items? Finding the funding for it right now given the fact that we have a healthy fund balance and we have access to the tourism funds puts us in a good position in that way Okay All right, then i'm going to amend my motion to approve the work plan and increase the budget for the public art toolkit Great Can we also increase the budget for existing temp project managers and contractors there? We could Okay That's my motion Is there just to get more specific is there an amount That you would feel comfortable increasing the budget for existing temp managers and contractors How much did we spend of the 78 000 last year? Let me get that open I can't We had 63 100 budgeted last year. We spent 44 250 But the reason for that we probably would have spent all of it except that we lost david mid-year Do you remember our project manager david so that changed our staffing structure a little bit So what if we add david back in there? What does that take us to? I don't know because david's not available No, I just meant that no, I know but it would mean it would mean re or it would mean re looking at how we would hire Another contractor so essentially I would say if we are looking at a a part-time contractor For project management specifically we're probably looking at And just that and not anything else we're probably looking at it probably I don't at least 50 50 to 60 000 for a year That seems reasonable if we want to get something done So it sounds like your motion is to add the toolkits back in for this year and increase funding for temp project managers Um by another 25 000 or like double it essentially. Yeah, okay Okay, well if I appreciate your motion and I guess it's up to someone to second that and then there can be a discussion I will second that motion Great. Thank you. And let's move to a vote Discussion first Now that we had it all already. I don't know Everything said that can be said. I don't know I do support the Uh intention to increase the budget for Existing temp project managers and on contractors. So I would like to see that Uh line item increased. So I do support that. Thank you Nathan um Yeah, I'm just curious So that would trigger a hiring search Right to fill that position Yeah, the yeah, does that allow us in You know the fiscal budget for This year, right Yeah, so our the the nice thing about our project funds is that they do they do roll over they're not They don't disappear if we don't use them up. So essentially if we start the process of trying to find um contractor who can do additional project management Um or other types of consulting like for instance, we found kim'sum creative nico Um kim's in and his team uh to do some of our projects if there are um additional If if if there's additional work that his team wants to take on and we already have a contract with him We can add funds to his contract that would save us time Or we can start a search for project managers who would be able to take on the work that we're looking at We would essentially put the 20 the 50 000 that that's being proposed to put in the budget for this year On a contract with somebody depending on the scope of services that they they have And then that would just last us About a year, but if it goes a little bit into next fiscal year, you know what I mean? It's like it gets attached to the contract. Um that that started now And then we we see how how long that that lasts and then And that consultant would be tasked with um Realizing You know these these these community engagement packets Well, I think that they they essentially Yes, but they would be working on our team. So the way that we often work with consultants or contractors Jessica's really embedded in our team like a regular employee would be Our work with kim's and creative is slightly different where Really are an outside contractor We're working very closely with them to get the projects done that we are that we've hired them to do But um different relationship the and there's probably a variety of Places in between those things Different types of relationships there. So it depends on kind of who's doing the work and how that's What that situation is like, but I would imagine that both Jessica and I would be working very closely with them As well as getting input from the committee on the development of the tool kits so there would be Um, there would be additional there would be additional Um collaborative opportunities there to make sure that they They're they're doing it within the context of our public art program And not kind of outside in a vacuum Thank you. I have a question the Continuing projects is there Wine items for that as well or is it where is that? Yeah, the reason there's no budget associated with those is because they were already budgeted in previous years Or they're not they don't need additional budget. So it's like for instance the fire station Is just our staff time to manage. Um, it doesn't require any funding from the public art fund So we don't anticipate any bigger projects Next year then Outside of the highway 101 Overcrossing right. Yeah, the highway 101 over crossing and the fire station would be the two large physical installation projects that we would be working on in terms of the Sorry the meeting costs associated with build stronger relationships with the community organizations I know that's only a thousand dollars in our proposed budget. Um Would that Proposed budget include things that we could borrow from existing I guess whoever we're trying to organize a meeting with in terms of you know, are we Talking about getting new pop-up tents or new tables. Is that kind of like a catch-all for that category? Um Yes, we are. I mean what I think isn't Imagined under that line item exactly are things like if we're hosting Uh an open house for instance, we would be either paying a facility fee depending on where it was being held Um or potentially food for refresh costs for refreshments. Um printing of materials Um those types it's it was more thought of as those types of things We are working on getting a branded pop-up tent and tablecloth for event presence um And so those I guess that those two line items together that are in the yellow there Are are closely related and include those types of items So I would suggest maybe blending those two or putting them into one category and I mean if they are related costs, I'm not sure if they need to be two budget Two line items separately um And maybe allocating $500 from that into another pot into another pot if we are concerned about Um balancing this budget as it currently is Proposed, but it it's very helpful information to know that how our How the money if it's not used in this Fiscal year that it can be carried over to the following year. So that is very good information to know um Yeah, I'm not sure there's a need to or or concern about balancing the the budget So to speak it's it's more just prioritizing and so right now if the motion on the table is to increase The toolkits to 10,000 That would add 10,000 dollars to the proposed work plan expenditure plan and then if we were adding 25,000 outsourcing project managers and contractors um Then that you know that would go up by by so essentially the 333 turns into What 2535? 80 No 63 that anyway goes up All right, I am so not good at doing math on the spot But that's what we would be looking at and there's not really a need to move funds from one light item to another Well, I think this has been a fruitful conversation for talking about priorities. Um I would like to see some movement For some funds dedicated to the public art toolkits So I'm glad that attention has been given to that today in our conversation Were there any other committee members who wanted to weigh in on this conversation before we Before before we vote No, I made the motion to increase those other items, but I'm also feeling like I mean, I know that we put 50 thousand dollars for emergency response funds, but It just seems like there should be a project that something that were Something else that we're working on or some other opportunity out there for Bringing more art to the city so So do you think that's enough in terms of that allocation or are you concerned that's too much money to be putting aside for future? Well, maybe not enough Because it's I don't know what I don't know what emergency response funds means Like when we did there was a fire and we came up. We said we needed to do something Is that what you're talking about in that? Yeah, so we when we did when we started the process of our strategic planning for the public art plan It was during covet and so we were actually looking at kind of a needs assessment from the community because it was We're kind of in the middle of a crisis and it became clear that our community is Off more in the recent years more oftentimes than not in some kind of crisis whether caused by fires or COVID-19 or Or whatever else comes our way so So when we in the aftermath of the 2017 fires, we launched two Cycles of a project program called fire response where we often offered small grants to artists responding to the fires and recovery And then during COVID we we were able to shift and use program funds that we're going to go towards Other artists commissions. We put them towards the open and out program which commissioned art all downtown during the kind of semi-permanent closure of 4th street And so it that's what it so so realizing that those things happen And putting setting aside a certain amount in our budget For things like that should they be needed is what that Is what that's intended to be so that we're not scrambling to say Oh, well, where do we how do we fund something? We don't we wasn't in our annual plan and we didn't approve it So how do we fund something if we didn't approve it? So in that way then it becomes kind of a placeholder for something like that. I will say that You know having the highway 101 project and the fire Station project will be two big projects where there's new art being created And then the more kind of smaller projects we we already have committed funds In this in last year's budget and in this year's budget to continue working with kim's and creative And so one of their projects is to do the art art in the general plan Update and so they will be issuing grants through their contract So it doesn't come directly from us, but it goes through their contract. They will be paying artists to do projects in a variety of communities in support of Kind of community engagement efforts for the general plan. So there will be a variety of small projects being funded that way okay Thanks for the overview of that line item that makes a lot more or it helps me connect the dots a bit more where that is intended to go as a dog year so I I like hearing that explanation Is there any interest in our committee to increase that budget? slightly Since we know that it is unknowns and it's hard to plan for unknowns I think 50,000 is a good number currently just wanted to give opportunity for others to voice concern Seeing none I Would like to move to a vote thanks guys for having a conversation with us about Where these line items would be going potentially member sayers Member sayers Sorry. Yes Wonderful member as derian Yes member pointes yes Vice chair jones carter Yes Chair keefer Yes, I would like to approve with the additions Wonderful the vote passes unanimously by all members present Thank you everybody Great moving on to item 5.2. We will now receive project updates staff present updates on Updates on current projects. Thanks Tara. I'll hand it off to you Great. Thank you I'm going to have jessica start us off with some project updates on the current projects that she's overseeing and then I will add a few at the end Go ahead jessica sure So first up we've got unum We have had some delays with the artists submitting their budget The engineering and the final design so it's now looking like That will be the installation will be more like the end of the year We're also currently working on the text for the plaque for that sculpture and details for the installation For our fifth street parking garage mural and we're working on the dedication event and Actually, Melanie is going to give an update a little bit more about that during the committee report Um art surrounded underway just to remind everyone that's the project with creative sonoma and the public art program is an advocate and also a funder So we've identified seven artists or artist teams that are going to be Funded by the public art program So um, Tara and I are currently working on project details with those artists For our rotating exhibits, we've got three new shows coming up at the finley center and the person senior wing Those are all being installed this week and um, one of them is actually what we're talking about earlier with the office of community engagement They're installing a show that is portraits and stories from the multicultural roots project Um So I'll send out an email with more of the details so you have all the dates and everything But we've got the receptions for those are all going to be next thursday on august 11th from five to seven And those are open to the public And finally we've got live at juliar. We're halfway through the concert series so it's been Just a big success so far people are really happy having that back at the park and we've got Three more sundays to go and again i'll send a follow-up emails that has the um the lineup so you can all check it out if you'd like to Thanks, jessica. Um, I'll just add in a few um notes about our conservation and maintenance effort right now, um just as of actually last week Our conservation team made some final repairs to the dragon tile mural on the on the prince memorial greenway The piece is finally now stabilized. It had been a couple years of being in bad shape due to vandalism and The homeless encampments down on the creek trail So that's now complete We are also starting to work on some Repairs that actually the artists and the fabricators are overseeing of wellspring our new piece. Well, it's two years now two years old now in coffee park But the concrete Water drop let shapes are showing some unusual cracking so we're going to have the fabricator come out and make sure that they are Doing what needs to be done To keep that piece in good condition. So our conservator is going to oversee that work as well But the artist is taking care of those repairs for us And then the asawa art panels We should have the engineering for the panels and the attachment method to the fountain walls by early next week We're looking at hopefully getting that on monday a week from today And then a timeline for the rest of the project should be generated this week Um, we have a meeting scheduled for tomorrow with the foundry unfortunately artworks foundry Which is doing this work for us has had extensive closures and delays due to covet outbreaks. So they've been heavily delayed And um the artist in the general plan update as I mentioned in our last conversation We are continuing to collaborate with the santa as a forward team and kimson creative Is now planning and will be implementing and documenting outreach projects Targeting youth under 24 years old Through art projects working with local artists at sites in the equity priority communities across san rosa Based on the topics of environmental justice health and housing and these activities will start taking place soon and go through the winter So that is the update I have for all of those today Um, and both jess can I can answer any question? Thank you for the update Do any committee members have any questions or clarifications or ongoing projects? Just wanted to say i'm excited to hear about the salwa fountain and the panels Moving along I hope it's good news next week Okay, next we have item six committee reports 6.1 we have our ad hoc task force reports and discussions Uh Is there an update from the diversity equity inclusion and access? task force Yes, ann and I do not have an update at this time during this time we have um during the summer and just been different places and vacationing and whatsoever But I have been trying as hard as I can just to get the word out about the appc And having many conversations with as many people as I can It was everywhere and you know, i'm trying to get people excited and people are glad to hear That um, we have a whole you know, just new guideline a new outlook and are Definitely just What we're offering and what we have is is completely different and trying to be more community involved Thanks, lisa Community engagement Melanie, did you have an update or? Yes about the dedication ceremony. Yeah So the date of the um dedication Ceremony is going to be friday august 19th from 5 30 to 7 Downtown by the mural And we're seeking help from all of you To help with set up and break down Our plan is to have speakers Have the artist talk have the chair of art in public places say a few words. Oh, yeah Uh Tara's going to be our emcee and um We're creating some postcards, which we hope to get in the next few days And um, I'd like to have people help me pass them out at the wednesday night farmers market on the 10th and 17th You can just email me if you're willing to help with set up break down whatever you feel like We'll have light snacks. We're I'm trying to work on a food truck. It's not confirmed yet. We'll see um Let's see. I think that's About it Don't forget anything Okay Yeah, this is our actually our first go round of a kind of big dedication. So Um, hopefully we'll be doing this more often with more money And making it bigger each time we do it. So Yeah, but we're excited We're gonna invite everybody. Oh, I'm sorry. What 5 30 to what seven. Okay Yeah, and the streets going to be blocked off and um So we'll be able to mingle around Um in a safe distance Distancing safely. Yes. Um, and I think that's it Great. Thank you for your hard work and your uh, your organization to get this going We just need to email you Melanie. Yes. Okay. Great. And if I don't hear from you, I'll just email you And Yeah, maybe it would be helpful to have an email going out initially so that our members who aren't on our meeting today Yeah, no to reach out to you and the date and time Yeah, well, we'll make sure we send a recap to everyone and then we'll let them know if they want to volunteer to reach out to you Melanie. Okay, great. Thank you Thank you Uh, so if you have those, um, I'm sorry one more thing If you have those name tag things make sure you wear them that day or if you're gonna come and help Hand out postcards wear them or make one up Thanks for reminding us I'll make sure that we have an order in for um Committee members who don't have them already. Okay great For the summer time, I do not have a update from the project development committee Nathan, is there anything you would like to say? We will uh reconvene and then um connect with Everyone on this committee about moving forward With the tool kits uh and and kind of the audit of the current process. So as we See moving forward with that we'll we'll keep everyone updated Um, yes, there are no project reports that I have at this time if Reisa or Jessica have anything, uh, please go ahead Otherwise, I think we can move on Okay Great. Thank you. Okay Item eight we have future agenda items Time is running out. We're going to move on to the agenda items Time is reserved for discussion whether to place matters on a future agenda for future discussion Uh, I think today was a very fruitful discussion about our budget and how we want to move forward um I do not have any additional items to add to a future agenda. Does any committee member Nathan Yeah, thanks, um if um Kind of curious about Tara's The way that you were talking about uh, sort of third party nonprofits and how that how there's the potential to move more quickly on Community engaged projects through that mechanism and uh, I wonder if we might sort of Put that on on the list as something to consider down the road Sorry, I was muted. Um Yeah, we can definitely put that on the list to consider for uh, discussion I think in general we try to keep that On our minds when we're talking about partnerships and collaborations Knowing that it is can be a very helpful way to get um projects done faster or or to support Community-based projects without um an extensive process um So it's not it it doesn't necessarily need any action to be our to be able to happen It can already happen and we try to keep that in mind for when we are um Planning projects or doing projects, but um, but I think it's worth having on Having it on the list as a um kind of discussion more around like how how How do we prioritize That in in how we work. So I think maybe that the framing that I would suggest for that So there's no need to your mark specific funds for in order to facilitate those kinds of partnerships Not necessarily no we have I mean in in our in our outline for our strategic Plan and what we just approved for our annual work plan There's a line item for commissions and grants Sorry grants to art organizations That's generally what that means. It's just we may have different uses or or it may be prioritized differently depending on what our needs are at the time So right now the recommendation in this annual plan is to say, okay Well, let's kind of your mark those for some kind of emergency response or crisis response as needed um but that you know, there's there's Like for instance the way that we partnered with um Creative Sonoma and the metro chamber of commerce for open and out. That's kind of what what an example of that can look like Okay, thanks Great. That was a good reminder that that can be an ongoing conversation topic on as we As we have our our regular meetings Well, thank you. Uh, do we have any other future agenda items or discussion items and these if if anything does come up later on in the week or between our meetings, let's uh Email them to tara and um Keep our group informed just so that we can keep moving things do not always have to be um or sorry, I Encourage us to keep our our energizing thinking going even when we not when we do not have regular meetings As a reminder Kristen, I just wanted to add one little thing that I forgot I should have mentioned it at some point probably under department reports But I wanted to share that the committee should expect to receive an email from Nico and his team with kim's and creative about scheduling special meetings to hold our um Uh diversity equity inclusion workshops So his team is planning a series of four workshops That will be held during a committee meeting, but they will probably be scheduled as a special meetings So you should receive a Survey to fill out with availability for that And I think they're targeting To begin those the second week of august. So hopefully an email will be coming from them soon So Great, I'll keep my My eyes open for that email and will respond promptly Uh reminder for everyone the next meeting for the art and public places committee scheduled at Beginning of september on monday the fifth is canceled due to the labor day holiday We will stay tuned about our next special meeting if one Will take place in september So thank you everyone This is a great meeting. Bye


The F-35 program is really important to the future naval aviation. It's absolutely an essential part to complement the carrier strike group of the future. The F-35 is Navy's first fifth-gen fighter. That brings a whole new weapons platform to the carrier strike group. The first thing that's different when you really look at it is stealth. This aircraft was designed for stealth day one capability. You have your touch screen display, your helmet with full 360 degree view. It's easy to fly and it's fun to fly. It's a game changer. To be on the baseline creating the foundation for the joint strike fighter for the F-35 for the Navy and being part of that initial team to take it out to sea and send it to the carrier, which is what is unique to us. We've got big shoes to fill here as we bring the F-35 to the fleet. It's an opportunity of a lifetime to come and work with the latest and greatest that the Navy's got to offer. To be a part of the ground level, fifth-generation fighters in the future of the Navy is a perfect opportunity for any sailor. It's extremely rewarding. It's really cool to have been able to be a test pilot and actually help develop the weapons platform and the aircraft and get to see all the hard work kind of pay off. See the smiles on the faces of the pilots can fly it. See the hard work of the sailors and how happy they are that the Navy now has the newest platform, we're flying it and we're executing it. There are numerous unique benefits to having a joint integrated training environment here at Eglin Air Force Base. We are able to pool our assets and create a facility that truly caters to the demand that is required to bring this airplane online effectively and train everybody effectively and efficiently so that we can get the capability out to the fleet on time correctly the first time. One of the great opportunities coming here to VFA 101 was being able to work with the joint services, working with the Air Force and the Marine Corps here in the F-35 country. To be a part of a fifth-generation fighter is an amazing opportunity. It's going to be very challenging, but yet very rewarding, something that, you know, very excited to be a part of. For those sailors that are interested in coming down and being part of the foundational group for this future of tactical naval aviation, it's a great place to be and a great time to be here. We have our first two airplanes and there's more coming. So for those that are looking to be challenged and to be at the forefront at the tip of the spear for a new platform, this is the place for you.


Embrace the manipulation. We are not the manipulators, but why not take advantage?  Everything is the manipulation the sooner you figure out What that manipulation is be on that same side


The president of the Pan-Ijaw Youth Group, Ijaw Youth Council, Pitta Iqbifa, has regained freedom from his abductors. Iqbifa was reportedly kidnapped on Tuesday morning by unknown gunmen in River State while heading to the airport for a trip to Abuja. Iqbifa confirmed that he was abducted, saying the gunmen that took him away wanted him to call off the ongoing protests against the failures of the federal government to inaugurate a substantive board of the Niger Delta Development Commission, NDDC. He said he was released at Pocuma in Biosas State by the gunmen who barricaded his vehicle on Tuesday morning, blindfolded him and drove him to many places. Iqbifa called on Ijaw Youth to troupe out and mass for the continuation of the demonstration. Iqbifa News Updates


The remaining nominees for the election of the deputy presiding officer are Annabelle Ewing, Rhoda Grant and Liam McArthur. The voting period is now open, using the same voting procedure as before. I ask that members please put on their face coverings while the clerks distribute the ballot papers and for the duration of the voting period. Voting for this round of the deputy presiding officer election is closed, and I would now invite the scrutineers to proceed to P102 for the counting of votes. In this round of voting in the election of the deputy presiding officer, the number of votes cast for each candidate was as follows. Annabelle Ewing, 64, Rhoda Grant, 16, Liam McArthur, 44. There was one abstention, no spoiled ballots. Accordingly, as Annabelle Ewing received more votes than the total number of votes received by the other candidates, and as more than 25 per cent of members voted, Annabelle Ewing is elected as deputy presiding officer. My congratulations, Ms Ewing, and I'm looking forward to working with you. As members may know, I have selected three urgent questions for this afternoon. Those will follow a brief suspension at the end of the election of the deputy presiding officers. When we get to that item, if you do wish to ask a supplementary question and you're either in the main hall or public gallery, you should raise your hand when the relevant question is asked. The clerk will then convey your request to me and will direct you to a part of your location from where you would be able to ask your question if called. I believe that Daniel Johnson would like a point of order. I'm grateful for taking this point of order. I think that we all recognise the huge importance of the election of the deputy presiding officers, but I think that quite a considerable amount of time has been taken, probably twice as much as any of us might have expected this process to take. Can I therefore ask you to consider bringing forward a motion under rule 17.2 in consultation with the Parliamentary Bureau to vary standing orders, in particular under rule 11.9 subsections 9 and 10, so that we can substitute the mechanism currently in place with the use of the single transferable vote, which is a method far more suited to an election of this sort and would be far more efficient? I'd be very grateful if you and the bureau could give consideration to this. I thank Mr Johnson for his point of order. I will not bring forward such a motion today. I'm sure that he would agree that it would be potentially unfair and inappropriate to change the election method halfway through, but I would certainly agree that this can be considered ahead of the next such election. We're going to have a five-minute period during which candidates may notify clerks should they wish to withdraw, because we're now going to move on to, well, we will, after that five-minute period, move on to the election of the second deputy, Presiding Officer, but I'm going to allow five minutes should any candidate wish to notify clerks of an intention to withdraw. Thank you. The candidates for the election of the second deputy, Presiding Officer, are Claire Adamson Claire Baker Jeremy Balfour James Dornan Rhoda Grant Liam MacArthur Stuart McMillan Edward Mountain Bill Kidd has withdrawn from this election. Voting rounds will now begin for the second deputy, Presiding Officer, involving all candidates who were unsuccessful in the election of the first deputy, Presiding Officer, as I have just described, and there will now be a short break while ballot papers are printed, so we'll have another five-minute suspension. The voting period is now open using the same voting procedure as before. I would ask that members please put on their face coverings while the clerks distribute the ballot papers and for the duration of the voting period. Voting for this round, if the presiding officer election is now closed, the clerks will now take the ballot boxes to P102, and I'd invite any scrutineers appointed by the candidates to make their way to P102 to observe the counting of ballot papers while observing social distancing. Thank you. In this round of voting in the election of the second deputy, Presiding Officer, the number of votes cast for each candidate was as follows. Claire Adamson, 10, Claire Baker, 13, Jeremy Balfour, 5, James Dornan, 9, Rosa Grant, 10, Liam McArthur, 45, Stuart McMillan, 20, Edward Mountain, 12. I have been notified that Mr Mountain intends to withdraw from the next round of voting. I should say that there were no abstentions and no spoiled ballots and that the candidate eliminated from this round is Jeremy Balfour. A further voting round will now begin for the election of the second deputy, Presiding Officer, and there will be a short break while ballot papers are printed. I suspend this meeting. The voting period is now open. Using the same voting procedure as before, I ask that members please put on their face coverings while the clerks distribute the ballot papers and for the duration of the voting period. For this round of the deputy, Presiding Officer, election is now closed. The clerks will now take the ballot boxes to P102, and I would invite any scrutineers appointed by the candidates to make their way to P102 to observe the counting of ballot papers while observing social distancing. It's here I've spent all of my years and hundreds of thousands of seats per hour. What do you base it on? You do what it is. It's the test point of what you do. It's not the sex point of all. It's the negative. It's the soul of you. I'm not sure if it's true, but it's the worst. It's a lot of fun. I'll give it a second. Exactly. I'll put it back on. It's a 65 basis. It's just what you're writing in your 65 basis. I'll put it back on. It's just what you're writing in your 65 basis. Thank you. In this round of voting in the election of the second deputy, Presiding Officer, the number of votes cast for each candidate was as follows. Clare Adamson, 7. Clare Baker, 9. James Dornan, 5. Rhoda Grant, 9. Liam McArthur, 74. Stuart McMillan, 19. There were no abstentions and there were no spoiled ballots. Accordingly, as Liam McArthur received more votes than the total number of votes received by the other candidates and as more than 25 per cent of members voted, Liam McArthur is elected as the second deputy, Presiding Officer, of the Scottish Parliament and I very much look forward to working with him. I would also at this point like to thank each and every candidate who took part in this election. As you may be aware, we will have an urgent question session this afternoon and I would suggest that we suspend from now until 4pm when we will move to urgent questions. Thank you. I suspend.


It's been a long time since I've done a review video. I admit I'm out of practice. It may take some time for me to get back into the routine of making videos. Until then, there may be a few minor mistakes. In the meantime, welcome back to the show! Hello everybody hooded Cobra Commander 788 here. I'm back after a long hiatus, and I'm having to relearn how to do review videos. You know, you think you'll never forget until you step away from it for a while, and then you can't remember which way the camera goes. Stalker is my favorite G.I. Joe character. That's something I've said many times before. My favorite version of Stalker is the first version, or at least version 1.5 with the swivel arms. There's another very popular version of Stalker that deserves some attention. I'm talking about Stalker version 2, the Tundra Ranger. Yes, I know the name Stalker is awkward. I've already addressed that in past videos. Hasbro seems to have embraced the name since they released a 6 inch action figure with the same codename. Does this figure live up to the iconic character it represents? Let's find out. HCC788 presents Stalker. This is Stalker. G.I. Joe's Tundra Ranger from 1989. This figure was first available in 1989. It was also available in 1990. It was discontinued for 1991. This is the second version of Stalker. There are five versions of Stalker in the vintage era, plus one half version. Version 1 of Stalker was released in 1982 as part of the first wave of new G.I. Joe action figures introduced that year. Version 1.5 of Stalker was released in 1983. It had updated articulation and other minor changes. All of the 1982 figures were released in 1983 with these minor updates. Then, of course, version 2 was released in 1989. That's the subject of this review. Version 3 was released in 1992 as part of the Talking Battle Commandos with this oversized backpack that had an electronic voice gimmick. Version 4 was released in 1993 as part of the Arctic Battle Commandos mail away set. It used the same mold as version 2, but with updated colors. Finally, version 5 was released in 1994 as part of the Battle Core set. 1994 was the final year of the vintage G.I. Joe toy line. Thus, this was the final vintage version of Stalker. 1989 was the year to release new versions of 1982 characters. Also that year, they released Rock and Roll version 2 and Snake Eyes version 3. Stalker was G.I. Joe's first Ranger, updated to Tundra Ranger for version 2. Version 1 was outfitted for jungle combat. Version 2 is equipped for a cold weather environment. As a Ranger, Stalker would be a graduate of the U.S. Army Ranger School. The U.S. Army Ranger School was established in the 1950s. In the early 1960s during the Vietnam War, the U.S. Army deployed long-range reconnaissance patrol units in Vietnam. In 1969, those units were designated as Rangers. We know a lot about Stalker's history from his appearances in the comic book and his file cards. During his service in Vietnam, he was on a long-term reconnaissance patrol unit. That's where he met Snake Eyes and Storm Shadow. Snake Eyes was G.I. Joe's commando in 1982. Storm Shadow was Cobra's ninja in 1984, but he switched to the G.I. Joe side by 1988. G.I. Joe had some other notable Rangers, including 1982 Scarlet, 1985 Flint, 1986 Beachhead, and 1988 Repeater. Larry Hama, the writer of the G.I. Joe comic book, has implied that the character of Stalker was based on his friend and colleague Ed Davis. Davis was an artist and a member of Neil Adams' Crusty Bunkers at Continuity Studios. Some elements of Ed Davis' background, such as his service in Vietnam as part of a long-range reconnaissance patrol team, was made part of Stalker's backstory. Hama has long stated that he based Stalker on a real person, but only recently hinted at who that real person may be. This version of Stalker is denoted as the Tundra Ranger. The Tundra is a biome with limited tree growth due to frigid temperatures. This Stalker is equipped with cold weather gear and colors that would be appropriate for that environment. Let's take a look at Stalker's accessories and let's start with the least interesting one, this mask. This mask is made out of white, somewhat flexible plastic. It fits over the figure's head. Normally I would warn about the accessory scraping the paint off of the head, but I don't think that's very likely because I don't think this mask was used by anyone ever. Now let's look at Stalker's primary weapon, what the file card simply calls a rifle. The rifle is made of white plastic. It's not exactly based on a real-world weapon, but it has some pretty good details for a fictional rifle. It has a scope and either a collapsible or folding stock. It fits well in the figure's hand without stretching the thumb. Next let's look at his knife. The knife is in light gray plastic. It has this cool kind of barbed looking blade. It's a bit oversized for the figure, but G.I. Joe Knives tended to be. The next accessory we're going to look at is not so much an accessory, it is a small vehicle and that is the kayak. This kayak is made of four parts or five if you consider the hull to be a separate piece, but it comes packaged as the kayak itself, the machine gun that fits on top, this support arm, and the counterbalance which the card contents call a backpack, and it does kind of work that way. Separate from the kayak is this paddle in white plastic. This is useful if Stalker ever finds himself up Sh** Creek. You can place the paddle in the figure's hand, but I would recommend just putting the thin part into the figure's hand rather than this thicker center part. Also the paddle itself feels like it could be a little brittle, so be careful not to break it. The kayak is a very large piece to come with a carded figure. It is in white plastic, it keeps with the tundra theme. It has some technical detail and panel lines on it. It has a couple sculpted in air tanks here. This support arm pegs to the bottom of the kayak and can be removed, and the counterbalance pegs onto the arm. The machine gun on top of the kayak is in brown plastic. It pegs onto the top and it can swivel on that peg. It can also be removed. The machine gun is very well sculpted. It even has some ammunition on the side. It will fit in the figure's hand, and there's a handle on the top for carrying. The counterbalance has a radio molded on it.  Both the kayak and the counterbalance peg onto the support arm with back pegs, which means either of these can be pegged onto the back of the figure. The counterbalance can peg onto stalker like a backpack, and now he sort of has a backpack with a radio. The kayak can also peg onto the back of the figure, so he can carry it that way, but it's a little comical because it doubles the height of the figure. While that certainly is a display option, a better display option would be to simply put the figure in the kayak. He fits quite well. Can it float? Well, not... No, no, not very well. This is extraordinary. This is a single-carded figure that comes with a small vehicle. It's only because of the overall success of the G.I. Joe toy line that we could get something like this. Let's take a look at Stalker's articulation. He had the articulation that was standard for G.I. Joe figures by 1989, so he could turn his head from left to right and look up and down. He could swing his arm up at the shoulder and swivel at the shoulder all the way around. He had a hinge at the elbow, so he could bend his arm at the elbow about 90 degrees. He had a swivel at the bicep, so he could swivel his arm all the way around. This was an O-ring figure, meaning the figure was held together with a rubber O-ring that looped around the inside, so he could move at the torso a bit. He could move his legs apart about so far. He could bend his leg at the hip about 90 degrees and bend at the knee about 90 degrees. Let's take a look at Stalker's sculpted design and color, starting with his head. And on his head, he has similar facial features to version one, but instead of the green beret, he has a camouflage snow cap. This makes sense given the environment-specific outfit. On his chest, he has a white jacket with a high collar. The jacket has some sculpted seams on it that looks really good. He has some unpainted shoulder straps. I would prefer those to be painted in. On the right side of the jacket, he has these yellow objects, which may be bullets. Then on the left side, he has these red objects. It's hard to tell what that is, and that's not featured in the artwork. Under the white jacket, he's wearing a light green scarf, almost a lime green. And under that, he's wearing a camouflage uniform shirt that's not too dissimilar from the version one uniform. It looks like he's wearing almost like his version one uniform with the jacket over it. His arms feature white jacket sleeves, and he's wearing light green gloves, long gloves that cover part of his forearms, and the gloves have a crisscross pattern on them. On his waist piece, he has light green trousers with some sculpted on pockets and a dark green belt. Not a lot of detail on that belt. And a strap on the right side that goes down to the pouch on his right leg. On his legs, he has light green trousers. And on his right leg, he has a dark green pouch strapped to his leg. The pouch looks like an ammunition pouch with some grenades on the sides. This is very similar to the detail that's on the chest of rock and roll version two. On the legs, we have what looks at first like a brown camouflage pattern. But if you look closer at it, it kind of splotches up from underneath. So instead of camouflage, this looks like mud splatter. He has brown boot covers over brown boots. At least I think they're brown. They could just be covered with mud. But if that's mud on the boots, the mud did not get on the black knife that's strapped to the left ankle. The knife is handle side down, which seems like it would not be easy for access. As mentioned, the 1993 Arctic Commandos version four uses the same mold as version two with different colors. It looks pretty good. It keeps the same mud splotch pattern, but with a different shade of brown. A tundra would be a combination of snow, rock and grassy plains. Stalker's uniform fits that kind of terrain. He would be well camouflaged for the tundra, depending on the time of year. Let's take a look at Stalker's file card. The file card has his faction as GI Joe. It has a portrait of Stalker here. Some pretty good artwork. His code name is Stalker. He is the tundra ranger. Let's take a look at Stalker's file card. The file card has his faction as GI Joe. It has a portrait of Stalker here. Some pretty good artwork. His code name is Stalker. He is the tundra ranger. His file name is Lonzo R. Wilkinson. His primary military specialty is infantry. Secondary military specialty is medic slash interpreter. His birthplace is Detroit, Michigan, and his grade is E7. This is all the same as the version one file card, except for the grade. He was an E5. He is now an E7. This first paragraph says, one of the original members of the GI Joe team, Stalker served in the same LRRP unit with Snake Eyes and Storm Shadow in Southeast Asia. The asterisk says LRRP stands for Long Range Reconnaissance Patrol. Southeast Asia basically means Vietnam. This first sentence sums up Stalker's comic book continuity. He is a graduate of the Army Languages School in Monterey, the intelligent school at Fort Hollowbird, and the Ranger School at Fort Benning. Stalker is a qualified jump instructor and a qualified expert in all NATO and Warsaw packed small arms. Army Languages School refers to the Defense Language Institute Foreign Language Center in Monterey, California. Intelligence School refers to the U.S. Army Intelligence Center formerly at Fort Hollowbird, Maryland. It's no longer there. It was moved to Arizona in 1971. If Stalker attended at Fort Hollowbird, it must have been very early in his career. The U.S. Army Ranger School is at Fort Benning in Georgia. The special training on this file card does track with what's mentioned on the version one file card, but this is much more specific on where Stalker got his training. This bottom paragraph says pick a place where nobody in his right mind wants to fight and you can bet your bottom dollar you're going to have to slog in there and blast into a firefight someday. The tundras of the world are flat, desolate, and cold in the nastiest, wettest way. If you want a foxhole, you have to scratch it out of permafrost inch by inch. Having to fight in the tundra zaps the strength out of the average soldier and dulls his spirit. All it does to Stalker is make him meaner than he is already. This is a nice write up and I like how it describes the difficulty of fighting in the tundra. It does not mention that he was a warlord of a large urban street gang prior to enlistment as the version one file card does, but that's okay. Stalker has moved beyond that. Looking at how Stalker was used in G.I. Joe Media in the cartoon, he first appeared in the real American hero mini series part one in 1983. He had a few appearances in the animated series, but he was not nearly as prominent as he was in the comic book series. He was in the deke era of the animated series in his version two uniform, but he was rarely more than a background character. In the comic book series published by Marvel Comics, he first appeared in issue number one in 1982. He was a main character in the series. He served with snake eyes and storm shadow in Vietnam on a long range reconnaissance patrol team. He brought snake eyes onto the G.I. Joe team. He was a mission leader on numerous occasions. Stalker was so prominent, it's not possible to cover all of his appearances in one video. Here are some highlights. He was team leader on many occasions, such as the mission to Afghanistan in issues number six and seven. He was badly wounded on a mission to rescue snake eyes in issue number 55. He was captured and held prisoner after the failed mission to the fictional country of Borovia in issue number 61. He had fewer appearances as the series went on to make room for new characters. He was still an important part of the series all the way through the run. He appeared in his version two uniform in issue number 92. In that issue, he was driving the warthog even though that vehicle came with a sergeant slaughter action figure. He was wearing his cold weather gear even though he was not in the tundra. Quite the opposite. He was in a hot climate South American country. He appeared in a few later issues in his version two uniform rarely in an environment that actually required his tundra equipment. In issues number 111 and 112, he's on a desert mission wearing his version two uniform. This is a case of the comic artwork sticking with the action figure design even when it doesn't fit with the story. We've seen that with torpedo wearing his wetsuit when fighting indoors, snow job wearing his snow gear on a boat, and gung-ho going shirtless in the snow. Looking at Stalker version two overall, Stalker is my favorite G.I. Joe character. I thought the 1982 figure with the camouflage looked really cool. When I read the comic books, I quickly latched on to him as my favorite G.I. Joe team leader. I would trust Stalker more than any other Joe to lead a mission and get the job done. More than Duke, more than Hawk. The version one figure is iconic. The version two figure is better in almost every objective, measurable way. The sculpting is sharper, it has more details, it has more paint. It's a beautiful action figure. This is something we should have seen more often. Classic characters with new uniforms for different environments. That way we could send our favorite guys on different missions. Despite this, nothing can displace the first version of Stalker as my favorite version. There's something about his battle-ready uniform that appeals to me. It's simple but effective. There's one area where Stalker version two excels above the first version and above most action figures, and that is the accessories. There are so many of them, maybe too many. One of the accessories is not really an accessory, it's a small vehicle. 1989 Stalker was not a deluxe figure like Zartan or Serpentor, where the figure was packaged with a small vehicle to justify a higher price point. Stalker was a carded figure. It was priced like other carded figures. It was put on the pegs with other carded figures, but his card had a big boat glued to it. The accessories are nothing short of amazing. Since he's supposed to operate in a snowy environment, it makes sense that you would have white accessories. It would have been nice to get an update of the classic submachine gun, but his new rifle will do. One of my pet peeves when a figure comes with numerous accessories is that sometimes can't hold them all, but Stalker can hold all of his accessories, both in the boat and when the boat is on his back. It looks a little silly to put the boat on his back, but it still works. We've talked about 1989 quite a bit. It was an intriguing year for G.I. Joe. It might be considered a course correction for the line. In 1987 and 1988, G.I. Joe got some space guys and a samurai. 1989 was still pretty colorful, but there were no fewer than six new versions of earlier action figures. They were trying to get back to the roots. That was my belated review of Stalker version two. Maybe not my favorite version of my favorite character, but still a good one. If you liked this video, please consider giving it a thumbs up on YouTube, subscribing to the YouTube channel, and sharing this video with your friends. I'd like to say a special thank you to my friends on Patreon whose support makes these videos possible. They've been very patient through my hiatus, and their support cannot be understated. I am eternally grateful. I'll be back soon with another vintage G.I. Joe Twitter review. That's right. I've already started it, and hopefully this one won't take quite as long. I'll see you then. And until then, remember only G.I. Joe is G.I. Joe.