Title
Staff Report for East Bay Bus Rapid Transit (EB BRT) Artistic Enhancement Process Representatives
Staffreport
SUMMARY AND RECOMMENDATIONS
The Alameda-Contra Costa Transit District (AC Transit) has requested that the City of San Leandro provide representatives to serve on several advisory committees that will assist in the implementation of the East Bay Bus Rapid Transit (EB BRT) Artistic Enhancement Strategy.
Because AC Transit is working under a tight timeline and requested that the City submit nominees in August when the Council did not meet, staff forwarded the following nominees to AC Transit:
Community Advisor - Council Member Cutter
Artist Selection Panel - Suzanne Pershing, President of San Leandro Arts Council
Technical Assistance Committee - Chris Zapata, San Leandro City Manager
Staff recommends that the Council ratify the above appointments to serve on these advisory committees.
BACKGROUND
The East Bay Bus Rapid Transit (EB BRT) is a high quality, high capacity rapid transit system that improves upon traditional transit systems by enabling buses to travel in dedicated lanes. The system's 9.5-mile route will begin at the 20th Street Uptown Station in Oakland, eventually making its way to East 14th Street in downtown San Leandro, and then along Davis Street to the San Leandro BART station. Service is scheduled to begin in 2016. As part of the project, AC Transit committed to including artistic enhancements with the design of the bus stations because of their demonstrated ability to improve public engagement, community identity and civic pride, as well as increase use of public transit more generally.
Analysis
In order to assist EB BRT in this project, AC Transit has requested that San Leandro provide nominees for the following committees:
Community Advisor:
This individual should be familiar with the community and ways to access the artists and artisans who reside in San Leandro. Their primary role is to informally advise on the artistic enhancement initiative. In addition, they could play an important role in recruiting artists, helping to introduce the Lead Artist to the community and providing assistance or support as requested to make the program a success. Staff has recommended that Council Member Cutter serve as San Leandro's representative on this panel.
Artist Selection Panel:
This individual should be recognized by the community for their strong sense of ethics and proven good judgment. They should also be imaginative and possess the ability to work with others in order to reach consensus. This panel's primary role is to evaluate qualifications and proposals by semi-finalists and select Lead Artist(s) for review by the City of San Leandro and approval by the AC Transit Board. It is envisioned that the time commitment would be 1-2 days. Staff has recommended that Suzanne Pershing, President of San Leandro Arts Council, serve as San Leandro's representative on this panel.
Technical Assistance Committee:
This individual should possess technical expertise, such as in architecture or related fields. Their primary role is to formally review online applications in response to the Request for Quotations (RFQ) for Lead Artist and pre-qualified pool of Supporting Artists or Artisans, as well as to rate applicants and select up to seven semifinalists for consideration by the Artist Selection Panel. It is envisioned that the time commitment would be five or more hours in order to review online applications, in addition to a potential ½ day or full-day meeting. Staff has recommended that City Manager Chris Zapata serve as San Leandro's representative on this panel.
ATTACHMENTS
- AC Transit East Bay Bus Artistic Enhancement Strategy
PREPARED BY:
Eric Engelbart, Assistant to the City Manager, City Manager's Office