Meeting_Body
REVISED
SYSTEM SAFETY, SECURITY AND OPERATIONS COMMITTEE
EXECUTIVE MANAGEMENT COMMITTEE
MAY 18, 2017
Subject/Action
SUBJECT: METRO PUBLIC ART STATE OF GOOD REPAIR REPORT AND PHASED APPROACH TO ART ASSET MANAGEMENT
ACTION: RECEIVE AND FILE APPROVE PHASED APPROACH TO ART ASSET MANAGEMENT
Heading
RECOMMENDATION
Title
APPROVE a phased approach to art asset management in response to October 2015 Board Motion (Attachment A).
Issue
ISSUE
At the October 2015 meeting, the committee directed staff to a) provide an annual report on the state of Metro’s public artworks, b) dedicate a reasonable amount of funds towards maintenance and/or restoration of Metro’s public artworks, c) include conservation and/or restoration of existing artworks in all future refurbishment projects, d) budget for maintenance of new artworks as they come online, e) create a regular maintenance plan for each Metro artwork, f) develop an action plan to restore Metro artworks that are not functioning as intended, including the restoration of artwork altered by the Blue Line Upgrades Project. This report provides the requested response.
Discussion
DISCUSSION
There are currently over 165 permanent artworks installed in Metro stations and facilities throughout the Los Angeles County and these artworks are an important part of the customer experience. While Operations staff regularly removes dust, dirt and debris from a number of artworks as part of their general station cleaning, the majority of the public artworks in the Metro system require special attention and care due to their unique nature and location (Attachment B).
Phased Artwork Maintenance Plan for Existing Lines
A phased approach to artwork maintenance and ongoing asset management is underway. Per Board direction, Metro began to address the backlog of deferred conservation and maintenance in FY17. The focus and priority has been on the Blue Line. Funds to replace artworks removed/altered by the Blue Line Upgrade Project have been secured and a proposal to refurbish the long non-functioning artwork in the Blue Line tunnel is under consideration as a FY18 Capital Project. A dedicated staff person is assigned to Blue Line art asset management and has initiated artwork repairs, refurbishments and replacements. This staff member also is developing artwork inventories, condition assessments, and catalogued art documentation as well as preparing comprehensive care and maintenance plans tailored to each of the line’s unique artworks. Consultants, including artists, conservators, fabricators and other specialized technicians assist with this work. Metro Art is now implementing regular ongoing Blue Line art asset care and management to ensure the artworks are kept in a state of good repair moving forward.
The next line being phased into a regular art asset management plan is the Red Line, which turns 25 this year. Staff will develop a phased plan to begin art asset management on the Red Line, including a request for additional staff resources in FY19 to address artwork repairs and refurbishments as well as annual inspections, care, and maintenance for the wide range of artworks along the line. Resources for the Green and Gold Lines will be requested as they reach their 20-25 year anniversaries, in FY 21 for the Green Line and FY23 for the Gold Line, as outlined in Attachment B.
There are several benefits to this phased line-by-line approach. With a large art program of 165 projects throughout the system, it allows staff to focus on the oldest art on the system first, and grow the Art Asset Management Program over time as resources are secured. Having a dedicated staff person assigned to care for all of the artworks on a particular line provides clear roles and responsibilities and follows the process of how Operations assigns their staff. Art Asset Project Managers will work directly with the broader Operations team to address site specific needs. They will also work directly with Construction staff to ensure retrofits and station modifications do not negatively impact the artworks as has occurred in the past.
New Lines
In the future, when new lines become operational, art asset management resources should be established along with Operations staff and resource plans in order to ensure appropriate care and art asset management from the onset. Metro has traditionally only funded art program staff for capital project delivery and not for ongoing operational purposes. For example, when the Expo 2 and Foothill Extensions were opened, none of the positions included in the operations staffing plan were allocated to oversee and implement art asset management. Moving forward, staffing resources will be essential to care for the significant number of artworks that will be added to the system through new lines and facilities. As with other assets, once an artwork has fallen into disrepair, its deterioration accelerates and the cost of restoration increases, so it is best to manage that asset as it enters into service.
Next Steps
NEXT STEPS
Staff will continue to pursue a phased art asset management approach and will work to ensure the aesthetic integrity and longevity of the systems art assets as resourced. Staff will work cross-departmentally to apply lessons learned and to ensure that care and management of artworks is included in future operational start up plans. As directed by the Board, staff will provide an annual report on the state of the agency’s artworks.
Attachments
ATTACHMENTS
Attachment A - October 2015 Board Directive
Attachment B - Metro Public Art Collection Asset Condition Report
Attachment C - Examples of Artwork in Need of Repair or Refurbishment
Attachment D - Art Asset Management Board Report Presentation
Prepared by: Maya Emsden, Deputy Executive Officer (213) 922-2720
Reviewed by: Pauletta Tonilas, Chief Communications Officer, (213) 922-3777
