Agenda of Public Art Panel Meeting - Thursday, 29 October 2020

CONFLICT OF INTERESTS

What is a “Conflict of Interests” - A conflict of interests can be of two types:

Pecuniary - an interest that a person has in a matter because of a reasonable likelihood or expectation of appreciable financial gain or loss to the person or another person with whom the person is associated.

Non-pecuniary – a private or personal interest that a Council official has that does not amount to a pecuniary interest as defined in the Code of Conduct for Councillors (eg. A friendship, membership of an association, society or trade union or involvement or interest in an activity and may include an interest of a financial nature).

Remoteness – a person does not have a pecuniary interest in a matter if the interest is so remote or insignificant that it could not reasonably be regarded as likely to influence any decision the person might make in relation to a matter or if the interest is of a kind specified in the Code of Conduct for Councillors.

Who has a Pecuniary Interest? - a person has a pecuniary interest in a matter if the pecuniary interest is the interest of the person, or another person with whom the person is associated (see below).

Relatives, Partners - a person is taken to have a pecuniary interest in a matter if:

§ The person’s spouse or de facto partner or a relative of the person has a pecuniary interest in the matter, or

§ The person, or a nominee, partners or employer of the person, is a member of a company or other body that has a pecuniary interest in the matter.

N.B. “Relative”, in relation to a person means any of the following:

(a) the parent, grandparent, brother, sister, uncle, aunt, nephew, niece, lineal descends or adopted child of the person or of the person’s spouse;

(b) the spouse or de facto partners of the person or of a person referred to in paragraph (a)

No Interest in the Matter - however, a person is not taken to have a pecuniary interest in a matter:

§ If the person is unaware of the relevant pecuniary interest of the spouse, de facto partner, relative or company or other body, or

§ Just because the person is a member of, or is employed by, the Council.

§ Just because the person is a member of, or a delegate of the Council to, a company or other body that has a pecuniary interest in the matter provided that the person has no beneficial interest in any shares of the company or body.

Disclosure and participation in meetings

§ A Councillor or a member of a Council Committee who has a pecuniary interest in any matter with which the Council is concerned and who is present at a meeting of the Council or Committee at which the matter is being considered must disclose the nature of the interest to the meeting as soon as practicable.

§ The Councillor or member must not be present at, or in sight of, the meeting of the Council or Committee:

(a) at any time during which the matter is being considered or discussed by the Council or Committee, or

(b) at any time during which the Council or Committee is voting on any question in relation to the matter.

No Knowledge - a person does not breach this Clause if the person did not know and could not reasonably be expected to have known that the matter under consideration at the meeting was a matter in which he or she had a pecuniary interest.

Non-pecuniary Interests - Must be disclosed in meetings.

There are a broad range of options available for managing conflicts & the option chosen will depend on an assessment of the circumstances of the matter, the nature of the interest and the significance of the issue being dealt with. Non-pecuniary conflicts of interests must be dealt with in at least one of the following ways:

§ It may be appropriate that no action be taken where the potential for conflict is minimal. However, Councillors should consider providing an explanation of why they consider a conflict does not exist.

§ Limit involvement if practical (eg. Participate in discussion but not in decision making or vice-versa). Care needs to be taken when exercising this option.

§ Remove the source of the conflict (eg. Relinquishing or divesting the personal interest that creates the conflict)

§ Have no involvement by absenting yourself from and not taking part in any debate or voting on the issue as of the provisions in the Code of Conduct (particularly if you have a significant non-pecuniary interest)

RECORDING OF VOTING ON PLANNING MATTERS

Clause 375A of the Local Government Act 1993 – Recording of voting on planning matters

(1) In this section, planning decision means a decision made in the exercise of a function of a council under the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979:

(a) including a decision relating to a development application, an environmental planning instrument, a development control plan or a development contribution plan under that Act, but

(b) not including the making of an order under that Act.

(2) The general manager is required to keep a register containing, for each planning decision made at a meeting of the council or a council committee, the names of the councillors who supported the decision and the names of any councillors who opposed (or are taken to have opposed) the decision.

(3) For the purpose of maintaining the register, a division is required to be called whenever a motion for a planning decision is put at a meeting of the council or a council committee.

(4) Each decision recorded in the register is to be described in the register or identified in a manner that enables the description to be obtained from another publicly available document, and is to include the information required by the regulations.

(5) This section extends to a meeting that is closed to the public.

BYRON SHIRE COUNCIL

Staff Reports - Corporate and Community Services 4.1

Staff Reports - Corporate and Community Services

Report No. 4.1 Mullumbimby Talking Street Trial

Directorate: Corporate and Community Services

Report Author: Joanne McMurtry, Community Project Officer

Andrew FitzGibbon, Place Liaison Officer

File No: I2020/1606

Summary:

The number one priority in the Our Mullumbimby Masterplan is to create a ‘Talking Street’ – an activation of Mullumbimby’s main street. Council was successful in receiving grant funding of $250,000 through the NSW government ‘Streets as Shared Spaces’ and there are several opportunities to incorporate art components into the trial. This report presents an overview of this place-making project and its artistic components, seeks feedback from the Public Art Panel on a draft Art Coordinator and curatorial brief and requests that a member participates in the assessment process.

RECOMMENDATION:

That the Public Art Panel:

1. Notes the project information provided;

2. Provides feedback on the project’s art components and draft Art Coordinator brief at the Public Art Panel meeting;

3. Nominates one member and an alternate member to participate in the Expression of Interest assessment process;

4. Notes that existing Public Art Panel members also participate in the Place Planning Collective and could assist as a conduit between the two to support a more integrated approach to delivering shared public art and placemaking outcomes.

Attachments:

1 Artist brief - Art components of Mullumbimby Talking Street Trial, E2020/82711 , page 14 ⇩

REPORT

The number one priority in the Mullumbimby masterplan is to create a ‘Talking Street’ – an activation of Mullumbimby’s main street. The community sees this project as an opportunity to trial well established aspirations defined in the Our Mullumbimby Masterplan. The masterplan was developed in collaboration with the community and endorsed by Byron Shire Council (Council) in 2019.

The desired outcomes of the project include:

· Demonstrate how better use of public space can enhance broader social and commercial activity

· Support residents, visitors and businesses during the current pandemic

· Provide places that are safe and social

· Create a platform for community-led events

· Build resilience and protection against future health, economic or environmental shocks, and

· Provide the opportunity to gain strong community support for permanent changes to Burringbar Street and its conversion to a ‘Talking Street’.

Council was successful in receiving grant funding of $250,000 through the NSW government ‘Streets as Shared Spaces’ program to implement the trial project. The trial is expected to commence in November 2020 and be completed and acquitted by September 2021.

Project Outline

Mullumbimby is home to over 3,500 residents and provides a service centre for the wider area and receives a significant proportion of the more than 2 million annual visitors to the Byron Shire.

Burringbar Street, lined with shops, cafes, restaurants and footpaths largely covered by awnings, is overused by through traffic (cars and trucks) and speeds are too high to create a safe, shared, pedestrian friendly environment. The impacts of COVID-19 have also had a major impact on trade and the ability for community interaction.

The broader trial will test temporary activation measures including:

1. Reshaping the intersection of Burringbar and Stuart Streets to provide additional public space, pedestrian crossings across all streets and painted road surfaces.

2. Artistic entry treatments and traffic calming at both ends of Burringbar Street (the Council end and the Post Office end).

3. Creation of parklets (small parks) that transform some car parking spaces or unused road space into much needed additional space for people.

4. New traffic arrangements at the intersection of Burringbar and Station Streets to support through-traffic to go around the main street.

5. Slowing down traffic on Burringbar Street so that people can more easily and safely walk throughout the centre.

Art Components

There are several opportunities to incorporate art components into the trial. These could include:

· Temporary public art pieces

· Painted asphalt or road art stencils (pending RMS approval)

· Vertical banners or flag poles

· Horizontal bunting or similar over the street

Due to grant timelines, the opportunity for feedback will be at the Public Art Panel meeting itself on 29 October.

An Art Coordinator and curatorial brief for the art components is attached for review. Assessment of applicants is expected to be completed by an assessment panel including Council staff, members of the project Community Working Group and a Public Art Panel representative. The Public Art Panel is requested to nominate a member, and an alternate, to participate in the assessment process.

Risk Assessment

Grant funds and final grant documentation have not been received to date. The project timelines will be confirmed depending on when the grant funding is provided.

Based on the Risk Assessment for this project, the following actions will be undertaken.

· Active contract management of the Arts Coordinator by Council staff, with additional contractual documentation in place (as per Council procurement processes)

· Risk assessment of individual art works (and associated installation) by Art Coordinator

· All aspects of art installation(s) will be incorporated into the broader project Risk Management Plan

· Community-based evaluation will be incorporated into the trial of art components – this will inform future place-making and public art opportunities

STRATEGIC CONSIDERATIONS

Community Strategic Plan and Operational Plan

	CSP Objective		L2	CSP Strategy	L3		DP Action	L4	OP Activity
Community Objective 2: We cultivate and celebrate our diverse cultures, lifestyle and sense of community		2.1		Support and encourage our vibrant culture and creativity		2.1.3	Enhance opportunities for interaction with art in public spaces	2.1.3.1	Implement Public Art Strategy
Community Objective 4: We manage growth and change responsibly		4.1		Support the visions and aspirations of local communities through place-based planning and management		4.1.1	Develop, implement and update Place Plans that promote place-based forward planning strategies and actions	4.1.1.5	Implement Our Mullumbimby Masterplan, Bangalow Village Plan and Byron Arts and Industry Estate Plan

Legal/Statutory/Policy Considerations

Public Art Policy – provides policy context for public art.

Public Art Strategy – provides strategic context and information for public art.

Public Art Guidelines and Criteria – provides guidelines for commissioning and the management of public art projects.

The Mullumbimby Talking Street Trial Project is a place activation/ placemaking project. The art components of the project are temporary. As this is primarily a placemaking project, approval for the project has already been obtained from Council. The Public Art Guidelines have provided guidance around art activities.

Financial Considerations

Council was successful in receiving grant funding of $250,000 through the NSW government ‘Streets as Shared Spaces’ program to implement the trial project. The budget for delivering the project’s artistic components is $20,000.

Consultation and Engagement

The Mullumbimby Talking Street Project is a result of comprehensive community consultation and there is a high level of collaboration between key community organisations and Council in delivering the trial.

The project was identified by the Mullumbimby Masterplan Guidance Group during the development of Our Mullumbimby Masterplan.

In addition, the following community groups worked with Council to submit the Streets as Shared Spaces grant application:

· Creative Mullumbimby

· Mullumbimby Chamber of Commerce

· Mullumbimby Residents Association

· The Place Planning Collective

To implement the project, a Community Working Group has been established including community members from Creative Mullumbimby, Mullumbimby Chamber of Commerce and Mullumbimby Residents Association.

The Public Art Panel includes 5 community representatives skilled in an area related to public art.

BYRON SHIRE COUNCIL

Staff Reports - Corporate and Community Services 4.2

Report No. 4.2 Public Art Conservation and Maintenance

Directorate: Corporate and Community Services

Report Author: Joanne McMurtry, Community Project Officer

File No: I2019/1228

Summary:

One of the key strategies outlined in the Public Art Strategy is to improve Council’s conservation and maintenance practices for currently owned public artworks across the Shire. This report describes the progress of mapping and inspecting Council’s public art assets and makes a recommendation for a budget line item to be created in the Open Spaces and Recreation budget.

RECOMMENDATION:

That the Public Art Panel:

1. Notes the current list of Public Artworks in Council’s Asset Management System.

2. Notes that the recently adopted Open Spaces Asset Management Plan includes public art assets and identifies that current budget allocation for assets outlined in the plan is insufficient to sustain assets at the desired standard.

3. Recommends Council establishes a Public Art Maintenance Reserve in the Open Spaces and Recreation budget of $10,000 per annum, commencing in the 2021/22 financial year, to cover the cost of annual inspections, conservation and maintenance.

Attachments:

1 Public Art Assets – Condition and Maintenance Requirements (August 2019), E2019/59740 , page 30 ⇩

REPORT

The Public Art Strategy recognises the need to improve Council’s conservation and maintenance practices for public artworks.

A report was provided to the 9^th May Public Art Panel meeting along with a list of the public art assets that are now recorded in Council’s Asset Management System. All known public artworks that are outdoors in public spaces have been mapped and added to Council’s Asset Management database. Council’s artworks are due to be valued in the next twelve months.

This list has been refined and updated and is provided as attachment 1, noting the following:

· The refined list includes 26 active or proposed public art pieces and 12 murals

· All known sculptures and public art pieces are now recorded and have been inspected for condition (except murals)

· The current condition of each public art asset is listed

· The maintenance requirements for each public art piece have been noted.

While murals have been included on the Asset Management Register, it should be noted that they do not constitute a standalone asset.

Council recently undertook a large piece of work in developing an Open Spaces Asset Management Plan (adopted June 2020).

Public art is included in the plan, along with recreation facilities, sports and park facilities, pools, irrigation, CCTV cameras, garden beds and beach accesses. The plan identifies that Council currently does not allocate enough funding to sustain these art assets at the desired standard.

The cost of maintaining current public art assets has been estimated at $10,000 ($5,200 for inspection and $4,800 for maintenance). Allowing funding to accumulate annually in a budget reserve would make funds available for periodic maintenance and conservation over the life-cycle of the works, such as re-grouting mosaics.

The estimate was arrived at following an analysis of the maintenance requirements for each artwork as provided in the Maintenance Manuals, as well as the recent condition assessment of the 25 existing sculptures, seats and poles across the Shire.

For example, in the recent inspection exercise, the following pieces were identified as needing rectification. The result is also noted below. Note there was minimal cost to Council to maintain the existing public art assets following this first structured inspection.

Defects/Require attention

Name	Where	Defects/Require action	Failure Risk	Result
Gateway Sculpture	Mullumbimby	Needs soil dug out from bottom of poles to prevent wood rot	HIGH	Fixed by artist
Labyrinth – Jenny Cargill-Strong	Brunswick	Grass needs to be trimmed away from sculpture, and needs to be made more visible. E.g. Install sign.	HIGH	Removed as per Council resolution
Catch a falling fish – Suvira McDonald	Federal	Tension cables needs tightening	HIGH	Artist reviewed and asked Council to fix
Testimonial Pole	Byron Bay	Timber pole has major rot and should be removed.	HIGH	Strengthened as part of Railway Park project

Additionally, consideration should be given to the situation in which artwork is placed. If vandalism and graffiti are to be avoided, the general area and landscaping needs to be maintained well.

The Strategy states:

“Repairing, removing and sometimes relocating artworks is central in a public art program. Damaged or unmaintained artwork presents a neglectful public image of the Shire.

There are clear cost benefits in a regular maintenance regime that may also include re-contextualising artworks to better locations.

Where possible, artists should be approached to repair damaged artworks. Other artworks, which have deteriorated beyond repair, or that have been poorly located should be removed.

(…) Once artwork is placed on the Public Art Register, council has an obligation to maintain the work properly. At the point at which the cost of doing so outweighs the benefit, the Public Art Panel is to be consulted, and a decision made on decommissioning.”

The current Public Art Guidelines state:

· In commissioning public artworks and in accepting bequests and gifts, Council accepts the inherent responsibility to maintain the work of art and its surroundings in a manner which is consistent with the design intent of the work, does not significantly inhibit or alter the intended perception of the work and is in accord with the instructions contained in artist's Maintenance Manual for the work, whose annual requirements will have been assessed and approved prior to the work's fabrication as being appropriate and within Council's financial and human resources.

· Council accepts that making provision for proper upkeep, maintenance and minimisation of vandalism includes the requirement for forward identification and cost planning of the progressively increasing annual cost of public art maintenance as the number of commissioned works grows.

· Whilst artwork donated to or commissioned by Council is owned and managed by Council, in all cases, the artist should have the first option to carry out repairs or recommend an appropriate repairer.

· The Public Art Panel will be responsible for reviewing Council’s public artworks collection and for implementing any decommissioning process;

· The Panel will be required to consult with individuals with the relevant qualifications and/or expertise prior to making a decision to decommission public artworks

· A process for decommissioning artworks is outlined in the Guidelines.

STRATEGIC CONSIDERATIONS

Community Strategic Plan and Operational Plan

CSP Objective

CSP Strategy

DP Action

OP Activity

Community Objective 2: We cultivate and celebrate our diverse cultures, lifestyle and sense of community

2.1

Support and encourage our vibrant culture and creativity

2.1.3

Enhance opportunities for interaction with art in public spaces

2.1.3.1

Implement Public Art Strategy

Legal/Statutory/Policy Considerations

Public Art Policy – adopted August 2018.

Public Art Strategy – adopted August 2018.

Public Art Guidelines and Criteria – adopted December 2019.

Reviewed by Legal Counsel: ☐

Financial Considerations

There is currently no budget allocation for maintenance of public artworks across the Shire.

It is recommended that Council considers establishing a Public Art Maintenance Reserve of $10,000 per annum, commencing in the 2021/22 financial year, to cover the cost of inspections, conservation and maintenance.

An estimated cost for an Asset Engineer to inspect the public art assets across the Shire and identify conservation and maintenance work is $5,200. This would leave the remainder of an annual budget of $4,800 available for undertaking any conservation and maintenance work.

As advised in the report, the maintenance, repair and decommissioning processes are all outlined in the Public Art Guidelines. In most cases, the artist will be contacted in the first instance. If the artist wishes to charge to maintain or repair an artwork, then their quote will be considered as part of the normal Council procurement process for works.

The public art budget allocation under Community Development is for 2020/21 is $16,900.

Reviewed by Manager Finance: ☐

Consultation and Engagement

Council’s Asset Management Team

Open Spaces Manager and Team Leader

Venue	Council Chambers, Station Street, Mullumbimby
Date	Thursday, 29 October 2020
Time	2.00pm