Lacey Commission on Equity recommends public art donation policy to city council  

A proposed policy that would establish the City of Lacey's first official guidelines for donated public art advanced through the Commission on Equity with recommended changes. 

Commissioners voted to endorse the draft and forward it to the Lacey City Council at a meeting on March 23, after identifying gaps in language around donor rights and artwork disposal. 

Lacey Special Projects Administrator Shanelle Pierce presented the draft, which would add a new subsection to the city's existing Council Policies and Procedures Manual on public art. 

Section 10.03 of the existing policy governs the selection and installation of public art but does not cover private donations, a gap city staff said became evident as community organizations expressed interest in donating statues and monuments. 

Policy scope 

The proposed policy outlines a process for prospective donors. Interested parties would submit a proposal to the City Manager's Office, which would conduct an initial review before forwarding the application to relevant city departments for technical assessments 

A final acceptance or rejection decision would follow, with approved donations resulting in a memorandum of agreement between the donor and the city. 

Decision-making authority would be based on value. Donations of $7,500 or less would be approved by the city manager, while donations exceeding that amount would require review by an art committee. Because no such committee currently exists, the City Manager's Office would designate an advisory board to fill that role. Pierce noted the Commission on Equity is already serving in that capacity. 

Donated objects must meet several criteria to qualify. They must have a clear title, be original works of art, reflect community values and be free of advertising or promotional content. Submissions must also carry no conditions or obligations, and be suitable for city use. 

The city reserves the right to decline any proposal inconsistent with community values, including works containing religious references, sexual content, negative imagery or political partisanship. 

The policy also expresses a preference for artists from the greater Puget Sound area. The preference is not disqualifying for artists outside the region, Assistant City Manager Shannon Kelley-Fong said, but would factor into the city's evaluation alongside an artist's credentials, reputation and body of work. 

Maintenance, disposition rules 

The draft outlines maintenance requirements associated with acceptance of donated works.  

Donors would be required to either contribute to a maintenance endowment fund of up to 10 percent of the object's appraised value or enter into a perpetual maintenance agreement with the city. The latter option would require an upfront deposit covering at least one year of maintenance costs. 

Commissioners then raised concerns about the policy's handling of artwork once it is no longer on display. 

Under the draft's conditions section, accepted donations become exclusive city property and may be displayed, loaned, retained or disposed of at the city's discretion. Permanent installation is not guaranteed. 

Several commissioners argued the policy should include language giving original donors a right of first refusal before the city disposes of a piece. Kelley-Fong said staff would look into crafting language to that effect. 

Commissioners also suggested replacing the word "application" with "proposal" in the submission process, noting the latter better reflects the nature of the exchange. 

The commission voted unanimously to recommend the policy to the city council with the discussed revisions.