Agenda - Parks and Recreation Commission - 01/09/2025

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4.6 Summary and Findings: Community Benefits and Costs of Public Art Listed below are the research findings in regard to the respondents perceived benefits and cost of public art: 1. All communities believe that public art is an important part of shaping and defining the identity of the community. Terms such as community image, building the city s brand, sense of place, and sense of community were used by respondents in each community as one of the primary benefits of public art. These benefits of public art reflect the place making function of public art found within the art,planning, and architecture literature previously discussed. 2. All communities recognized the value of giving a platform to local artists, arts community, and those supportive of local arts, to express themselves and to tell their stories. 3. All communities saw the value in the community conversations sparked by public art, whether the projects themselves were successful or not. In two of the communities, controversial public art projects, and the conversations that ensued, were credited with contributing to a greater success of subsequent public art projects. 4. Community A respondents had a greater emphasis on economic development and was the only city where the term return on investment was used in reference to public art. Two cities reference economic impact studies that had been completed to analyze the economic value that public art brings to their community. 5. Community A respondents had more comments relative to bringing the community together, creating a welcoming environment, and recognizing diversity within the community. As a first-ring suburb, Community A has a closer relationship to 113