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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCOUNCIL - AGENDA ITEM - 05/20/2014 - RESOLUTION 2014-036 DECLARING THE CITY COUNCIL'S CAgenda Item 17 Item # 17 Page 1 AGENDA ITEM SUMMARY May 20, 2014 City Council STAFF Jill Stilwell, Cultural Services and Facilities Director SUBJECT Resolution 2014-036, Declaring the City Council's Commitment to and Support for Participation by the City in the Creative District Certification Program. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY The purpose of this item is to request formal support through a City Council Resolution of an application for Creative District Candidacy for a proposed Downtown Fort Collins Creative District. The Resolution, if approved, will be submitted with an application for Creative District Candidacy to Colorado Creative Industries, a division of the Colorado Office of Economic Development and International Trade. The Candidacy process is a two-year incubation style program. STAFF RECOMMENDATION Staff recommends adoption of the Resolution. BACKGROUND / DISCUSSION In 2011, the Colorado legislature passed and Governor Hickenlooper signed into law HB11-1031 encouraging the formation of Creative Districts in communities, neighborhoods or contiguous geographic areas. These districts are distinct from funding or taxing special purpose districts, like metropolitan districts or the Scientific and Cultural Facilities District (SCFD). Creative Districts have no taxing or debt powers; instead they are a geographic boundary of creative and economic activity that meets the following purpose. The purpose of the bill is: • Attracting artists and creative entrepreneurs to a community, infusing new energy and innovation, which in turn will enhance the economic and civic capital of the community; • Creating hubs of economic activity, thereby enhancing the area as an appealing place to live, visit and conduct business, as well as create new economic activity; • Attracting visitors; • Revitalizing and beautifying communities; • Providing a focal point for celebrating and strengthening a community's unique identity; • Showcasing cultural and artistic organizations, events and amenities; • Contributing to the development of healthy communities; and • Improving the quality of life of the State's residents. The legislation charges Colorado Creative Industries with providing leadership and a helping hand to local communities desiring to develop their own creative district by designating Creative Districts, offering available incentives to encourage business development, exploring new incentives that are directly related to creative enterprises, facilitating local access to State assistance, enhancing the visibility of Creative Districts, providing technical assistance and planning help, ensuring broad and equitable program benefits and fostering a supportive climate for arts and culture. Agenda Item 17 Item # 17 Page 2 Creative Districts are defined as contiguous areas that include a mix of uses within their boundaries and are typically small enough to be walkable. All include a concentration of arts and cultural organizations and businesses, both nonprofit and for-profit. Most will incorporate complementary non-arts businesses such as restaurants, offices, retail stores, housing and lodging. All will be characterized by vigorous arts and cultural activity such as art walks and arts festivals. Often they will include community gathering places. In February 2014, the City of Fort Collins Cultural Services Department submitted a letter of interest for creating a Downtown Fort Collins Creative District (Attachment 1). The letter was accepted and now a full application is being prepared to become a Candidate for Creative District Certification. If accepted, Candidate Creative Districts work toward certification for two years. This two-year incubator style program offers Candidate Creative Districts a number of benefits in the form of direct funding and professional assistance, training and networking with peers coordinated through Colorado Creative Industries. The application to become a Candidate Creative District requires City Council’s formal support of the concept of developing a Downtown Fort Collins Creative District. The attached Resolution, upon approval by City Council, will become part of the application and submitted to Colorado Creative Industries on May 23, 2014. The Resolution expresses the Council’s support of the Creative District concept and that the Council will direct the City Manager to assign an additional staff member from outside of the Cultural Services Department to participate on the Creative District Steering Committee. The City’s proposed Downtown Fort Collins Creative District will be bordered on the north by the Cache la Poudre River, Prospect road on the south, and the 2014 MAX bus rapid transit line down Mason Street as the central axis through the District. The MAX line is flanked by cultural institutions within two or three blocks on either side. The District is anchored on the north by the Fort Collins Museum of Discovery and on the South by the University Center for the Arts. In between is Bas Bleu Theater, Center for Fine Art Photography, Fort Collins Museum of Art, the Community Creative Center at the Historic Carnegie, the Arts Incubator of the Rockies, Poudre River Public Library, Our Global Village Museum, the Lincoln Center for the performing and visual arts, Artlab, the Avery House, the historic Birney Trolley Car, and the award-winning Art in Public Places transformer cabinet mural project and other public art throughout. This Creative boundary also hosts the majority of our large cultural events, including Beet Street’s Streetmosphere program, Pianos About Town, FoCoMX Music Festival, and Bohemian Nights at New West Fest. In addition, there are numerous and distinct dining and shopping experiences, a boutique hotel and a new hotel in the works. Earning State of Colorado certification as a Creative District is important because it will provide the infrastructure and framework to help our community meet its goal of being a dynamic and uniquely creative center and destination for arts and culture and provide a focal point for celebrating this unique identity. The process and tools provided to candidates will be invaluable to harnessing the energy of our active creative community, enhance collaboration, and develop a truly unique brand and identity for the Downtown Core. These efforts will also enhance economic activity, attract and retain artists and creative entrepreneurs and inspire future live/work spaces within the Downtown Creative District. Additional information can be found at <http://www.coloradocreativeindustries.org/communities/creative- district-certification> BOARD / COMMISSION RECOMMENDATION At its May 12, 2014 special meeting, the Cultural Resources Board recommended City Council support the application for Creative District Candidacy for a proposed Downtown Fort Collins Creative District. PUBLIC OUTREACH A Steering Committee has been identified from within the proposed District representing different perspectives. The Creative District concept will be featured at the May 21 arts and culture networking event at the Community Creative Center. Should the proposed district become a candidate, extensive outreach will be part of the two-year incubation style candidacy process. Agenda Item 17 Item # 17 Page 3 ATTACHMENTS 1. Fort Collins Letter of Interest (PDF) 2. Cultural Resources Board Draft Minutes 5-12-2014 (DOC) Letter of Interest to Apply for Candidacy for Creative District Certification Downtown Fort Collins Creative District A small city of 150,000, Fort Collins is the hub of arts and culture in Northern Colorado. Over the last decade, Fort Collins has seen unprecedented investment in its creative infrastructure including the $45M University Center for the Arts, the $27M public/private Fort Collins Museum of Discovery, the $8.2M renovation and expansion of the Lincoln Center for the performing and visual arts. Investment is from all sectors - local government and citizen approved initiatives, the university system, non-profits, Downtown Development Authority, charitable foundations, business and the private sector, and individual community members. Fort Collins boasts more than 70 active arts and culture non-profit organizations, 30 of which represent the performing arts. Downtown Fort Collins is a unique mix of these cornerstone cultural organization, unique shops, creative business, and restaurants. You’ll experience tech industry employees meeting in the performing arts center, and artists displaying or performing in any available coffee shop, retail space, or architect’s office. The accumulation of accolades for Fort Collins as one of the “best places to live” in the country is based, in part, on the foundation of arts and culture and the quality of life it provides. This was further acknowledged when Fort Collins received the 2011 Governor’s Arts Award. Based on this history and momentum, we believe Downtown Fort Collins is well positioned to become a candidate for Creative District Certification. We propose to develop a Creative District in Downtown Fort Collins that is approximately seven blocks wide and thirteen blocks long. Fort Collins’ long-standing commitment to historic preservation and creativity provides the distinct character and backdrop for a creative district, with Downtown featuring creative reuse of 19 th and early 20 th century buildings that have been restored and reactivated as restaurants (40+), clubs and bars (20+), craft brewers (9), museums (6), galleries (14), coffee houses (8), bookstores (3), and retail shops, creative businesses and companies (130+). An informal survey of creative business estimates 20 photographers, 17 graphic designers, 16 architects, 10 landscape architects, eight interior design, and four florists. Our Downtown Creative District will be bordered on the north by the Cache la Poudre River, Prospect road on the South, and the brand new 2014 MAX bus rapid transit line down Mason Street as the central axis through the district. The MAX line is flanked by cultural institutions within two or three blocks on either side. The District is anchored on the north by the Fort Collins Museum of Discovery and on the South by the University Center for the Arts. In between we find Bas Bleu Theater, Center for Fine Art Photography, Fort Collins Museum of Art, the Community Creative Center at the Historic Carnegie, the Arts Incubator of the Rockies, Poudre River Public Library, Our Global Village Museum, the Lincoln Center for the performing and visual arts, Artlab, the Avery House, the historic Birney Trolley Car, and the award-winning Art in Public Places transformer cabinet mural project and other public art throughout. This Creative boundary also hosts the majority of our large cultural events, including Beet Street’s Streetmosphere program, Pianos About Town, FoCoMX Music Festival, and Bohemian Nights at New West Fest. In addition, there are numerous and distinct dining and shopping experiences, a boutique hotel, a full-service hotel, and a new hotel in the works. The proposed Creative District will be integrated with other community systems and planning strategy. Although the “Creative District” is not specifically cited in plans yet, the ground work has been laid and the vision and goals of a Creative District are supported. In 2008, Fort Collins City Council adopted its first Cultural Plan which strategizes to create a dynamic and uniquely creative community and a destination for arts and culture that enriches the lives of our citizens and visitors, and serves as an economic engine. A Creative District would leverage economic impact and build capacity for the Uniquely Fort Collins economic development cluster and support creative industries outlined in our Economic Health Strategic Plan and the Downtown Strategic Plan. The Creative District concept is also supported in the principles of the City’s recently revised comprehensive urban development policy, “Plan Fort Collins” including promoting, encouraging and stimulating the growth of cultural development (CPR1.1); creating a hub of cultural activity, building the identify of Fort Collins and downtown as a world-class destination (CPR2.2), employing arts and culture as an economic driver, and increasing the visibility of arts and culture (CPR2.1). The Cultural Services Department of the City of Fort Collins will be the lead local government organization. We will closely partner with: the Economic Health Office in developing strategy, engaging business, and collecting and reporting data; Beet Street to engage artists, creative business, and non-profits; and the Fort Collins Museum of Discovery to help tell our story. We will also create a Creative District advisory group with representatives from for- profit business, non-profit business, creative entrepreneurs, Convention and Visitors Bureau, Downtown Development Authority, Downtown Business Association, and business and property owners within the District and adjoining neighborhoods. Key demographics are found in the 2009 WESTAF Creative Vitality Index (CVI). Although CVI is at the county level, it helps inform what we can expect of our proposed district. The CVI shows 6,485 creative jobs in Larimer County, 50% more than the rest of the nation. The CVI top ten job categories for the county are photographers (1,358); writers and authors (623); Public Relations Specialists (520); Musicians and singers (367); editors (335); music directors and composers (318); graphic designers (262); media and communication workers (221); art directors (218); and fine artists including painters, sculptors, and illustrators (216). In 2012, the arts positively impacted Fort Collins’ economy, $19.2 million annually, a 20% increase over 2005 (Arts and Economic Prosperity IV, 2012). In 2013, Fort Collins population was estimated at 151,330. The population is 85.94% white; 3.01% Asian; 1.07% African American; and .68% American Indian or Native Hawaiian. 11.48% of the population identifies their ethnicity as Hispanic. Median age is 29.1 years old, based on a five-year average with 33,044 under age 18; 25,525 between 18 -24; 38,850 between 25 – 44; 29,659 45 – 64; and 10,485 65 and older (2010 Census). The population is 49.9% male and 50.1% female. Median household income is $51,446 and approximately 51.5% has completed four or more years of college (American Community Survey, 2007-2011). Downtown Core population was estimated at 2,485 (2002), and over 3,100 today according to growth statistics. Main attraction attendance includes the Public Library (450,000 annual attendance), Lincoln Center events (160,000), Downtown Business Association Events and Bohemian Nights (400,000), and the Fort Collins Museum of Discovery (115,000). Earning State of Colorado certification as a Creative District is important because it would provide the infrastructure and framework to help our community meet its goal of being a dynamic and uniquely creative center and destination for arts and culture and provide a focal point for celebrating this unique identity. The process and tools provided to candidates will be invaluable to harnessing the energy of our active creative community, enhance collaboration, and develop a truly unique brand and identity for the Downtown Core. These efforts will also enhance economic activity, attract and retain artists and creative entrepreneurs and inspire future live/work spaces within the Downtown Creative District. Cultural Resources Board Lincoln Center 417 W. Magnolia St Fort Collins, CO 80521 970.221-6735 970.221-6373 – fax . CULTURAL RESOURCES BOARD MINUTES Special Meeting – Monday, May 12, 2014 12:00 p.m. Lincoln Center, 417 W. Magnolia Street, Fort Collins, CO 80521 Council Liaison: Wade Troxell Staff Liaison: Jill Stilwell Chairperson: Maggie Dennis Phone: 590-3790 (cell) Vice-Chair: Chris Clemmer A special meeting of the Cultural Resources Board was held on Wednesday, May 12, 2014 at 12:00 p.m. The following members were present: Board Members present: Janet Gilligan, Chris Clemmer, Jesse Solomon, Maggie Dennis, Tedi Cox Board Members absent: Francisco Gutierrez Staff Members present: Jill Stilwell Guests Present: none I. Call to Order: 12:00p.m. - Maggie Dennis II. Consideration of agenda: none III. Public input: none IV. Discussion Item: The Board discussed the application being submitted by Cultural Services staff to become a candidate for the Creative District program through Colorado Creative Industries. The proposed district would be Downtown Fort Collins and is not a funding district. The Board made two motions: Ms. Gilligan made a motion that the Board wants to ensure there is connectivity between the proposed Downtown Creative District and the rest of the community by adding an “At Large” member to the Steering Committee and to request the Steering Committee include a strategic goal specifically addressing “outside of district” connectivity and impact. Ms. Cox seconded the motion. The Motion passed unanimously. Ms. Dennis made a motion that the Board recommends City Council support the Cultural Services application for a proposed Downtown Fort Collins Creative District to become a candidate for the Creative District program. Mr. Solomon seconded the motion. The Motion passed unanimously. VII. Adjournment: 12:38 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Jill Stilwell Cultural Services Director - 1 - RESOLUTION 2014-036 OF THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF FORT COLLINS DECLARING THE CITY COUNCIL’S COMMITMENT TO AND SUPPORT FOR PARTICIPATION BY THE CITY IN THE CREATIVE DISTRICT CERTIFICATION PROGRAM WHEREAS, the City Council has adopted a Strategic Plan goal to become a dynamic and uniquely creative center and destination for arts and culture in Northern Colorado; and WHEREAS, in 2010, the State of Colorado merged the Council on the Arts and the Art in Public program into the Colorado Office of Economic Development & International Trade, with the goals to create (1) a strong brand identity in the State, (2) a Top 10 reputation, and (3) create significant and sustained investment in the creative sector; and WHEREAS, in 2011, the Colorado General Assembly adopted HB11-1031 which created the infrastructure to designate non-taxing “Creative Districts” in communities, neighborhoods, and contiguous geographic areas, launching Colorado Creative Industries as the administrative agency to facilitate certification of Creative Districts; and WHEREAS, Colorado Creative Industries provides leadership and assistance to local communities to develop Creative Districts, including business incentives, industry specific marketing tools, access to State economic development grants, and technical assistance to develop equitable local programs to foster arts and culture in certified Creative Districts; and WHEREAS, the Creative District Certification Program has been established for the purposes of: attracting artists and creative entrepreneurs to a community, infusing new energy and innovation, which in turn will enhance the economic and civic capital of the community; creating hubs of economic activity, thereby enhancing the area as an appealing place to live, visit and conduct business, as well as create new economic activity; attracting visitors; revitalizing and beautifying communities; providing a focal point for celebrating and strengthening a community’s unique identity; showcasing cultural and artistic organizations, events and amenities; contributing to the development of healthy communities; and improving the quality of life of the state’s residents; and WHEREAS, in February 2014, the Cultural Services Department filed a letter of interest with Colorado Creative Industries to begin the Creative District certification process for a Downtown Fort Collins Creative District; and WHEREAS, Colorado Creative Industries has invited the City to file a formal application to become a Creative District candidate by May 23, 2014, which application requires endorsement by resolution of the City Council; and - 2 - WHEREAS, acceptance of the City’s candidacy will begin a two-year certification process, through which Colorado Creative Industries will evaluate local business and citizen support for designation of a Creative District in the City, including the City’s ability to develop matching funds from private sources and sustainable community participation and visitorship; and WHEREAS, the City Council believes that certification of a Creative District would promote and advance the City's interests and goals related to fostering local creative sector business development and desires that the City apply to become a Creative District candidate. NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF FORT COLLINS as follows: Section 1. That the City Council hereby embraces the goals and purposes of the Colorado Creative District Certification Program as described above, expresses its commitment to and support for the City’s participation in the Program, and hereby finds that participation and support for a Downtown Fort Collins Creative District furthers the interests and purposes of the City. Section 2. That the City Manager is hereby directed to apply for certification of a Creative District in Downtown Fort Collins, in an area bordered generally on the north by the Cache la Poudre River, and on the south by Prospect Road, and centered on the MAX bus rapid transit line, and is hereby authorized to take such actions as he deems appropriate and reasonably necessary to advance the City’s application for a Creative District certification. Section 3. That the City Manager is hereby directed to commit that City staff from both Cultural Services and other parts of the City organization will be assigned to participate on the steering committee for the proposed Creative District. Passed and adopted at a regular meeting of the Council of the City of Fort Collins this 20th day of May, A.D. 2014. _________________________________ Mayor ATTEST: _____________________________ City Clerk