Staff note that newer and smaller arts organizations are overburdened by the grant application process. "We're asking for a lot of work for what can often be very little financial support." Grants from the city can be between $500 and $7500.
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The current framework separates organizations and the amount of funds they can receive from the city into two pools based on their annual budgets. Staff say this furthers inequities by enabling larger organizations to get more money than smaller ones.
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Work on this is moving fast: staff are looking to come back to Council with final recommendations in May, to be finished in time for organizations applying for funding grants later this year.
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CM Stokes: "This is a good step forward in a lot of our hopes for arts & community. It will help us do a better job of getting particularly newer organizations involved."
DM Nieuwenhuis wants staff to add a lookback process to make sure they've hit the guidelines they wanted.
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CM Barksdale wants to make sure City is looking beyond BelRed in giving community opportunity to engage with arts. Staff note that the artistic offerings for which the city provides grants are not always within Bellevue's borders.
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CM Zahn wants to make sure that financial support for small orgs isn't just about enabling events, but also helping them build up their capacity. Would also want city to look into matching grants from the business community.
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CM Lee wants to make sure that grants give opportunities for cross-cultural engagement instead of just groups engaging with their own cultures.
Mayor Robinson wants to make sure public art displays are accessible and wants sustainability as a criterion.
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Also asks how Bellevue compares with other cities in terms of arts grant funding. Staff say the city is "mid to low" on arts grants funding per capita. A comparison:
Seattle: $5.34/capita
Issaquah: $3.74/capita
Bellevue: $0.94/capita
Renton: $0.51/capita
Redmond: $0.19/capita
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Direction from Council passes unanimously, so onto the final study session item on the Parks and Open Space System Plan. This was last updated in 2016. Council received a brief intro to the topic earlier this month.
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Final budget aspect of the evening is the Parks Funding Strategy, which was advanced as a Council priority for 2021-23. This syncs with work that's been done recently around the update to Bellevue's Parks and Open Spaces plan.
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Staff are seeking Council feedback on the draft plan, and they will seek final Council approval later this spring. The plan helps ensure the parks system is in line w/ Comp Plan policy, and also is required for certain accreditations and grants.
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Staff conducted a statistically-valid survey, which included a question on what parks facilities people use. Trails came in high, as did gardens & beaches.
I definitely support more waterfront parks - waterfront access shouldn't be restricted to property-owning millionaires.
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With so many residents using trails in the city, it's a good thing that there are $18 million in funds dedicated to Eastrail infrastructure in Bellevue in the State's Move Ahead WA package. You can read more about those funds in my latest Urbanist article.
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Staff summarize the updates thus far to the plan, including mentions of the Environmental Stewardship and Diversity & Equity initiatives. It also reflects that many planned parks projects have been completed since the 2016 update.
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Walkable access to parks facilities is not equal between neighborhoods - notice significant gaps in the neighborhoods I mentioned earlier: Eastgate, Factoria, and BelRed.
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For trails and wildlife corridors, staff are planning to add language to allow for more use of street ends and ROWs to provide access to trails & parks, and to broaden the goals around conservation & stewardship.
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Development of an Eastgate Park has been added to this plan update, as well as expansions of community parks.
The plan update also proposes the addition of cricket pitches, a new aquatic facility, and pickleball courts.
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Update includes language adding Wilburton as a priority neighborhood for urban park land acquisition, to reflect that neighborhood's redevelopment potential.
Also added language around a new nonmotorized boat launch facility and public access to Lake Bellevue, pictured below.
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Update has expanded the list of organizational partners and added land trusts as potential partners for land acquisition.
Language has also been added to reflect new opportunities for historical and cultural resources along the Eastrail corridor.
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CM Zahn thinks it's important to add cross-cultural programming to the plan and how the much-discussed Cross Cultural Center creates spaces for that engagement. Staff confirms the CCC is in the plan. Zahn notes the city may not be dedicating enough resources to community spaces.
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DM Nieuwenhuis wants more info on how city is planning to distribute off-leash dog parks in an equitable way. Staff note priorities are multipronged and center around Robinswood facility, new DT facility, new Newport Hills facility, & starting to look at new sites across city.
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Also asks for context around respondents mentioning their safety, staff clarify that it's describing their perceived safety accessing parks via walking. Staff also explain that strategies for pickleball courts are looking at expanding shared-court uses or regional approaches.
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Mayor wants to see more connections between urban pathways in DT Bellevue, as well as improved ped/bike connections between Kelsey Creek & Crossroads.
CM Lee notes the popularity of ping pong and badminton in AAPI communities but asks why they aren't included.
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Also brings up squash, doesn't want one community's priority to be chosen if it means foregoing others. He seems to also want there to be more dialogue with Councilmembers in the development and implementation of these plan updates.
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Council meeting is adjourned, w/ Mayor Robinson informing the public that next week's meeting is canceled b/c of Council's 3-day retreat this weekend. I'll be providing coverage of that event and am waiting on further details from city staff. In the meantime, thanks for reading!
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