Prince Edward County is preparing to adopt a new public arts plan, in cooperation with the Prince Edward County Arts Council to source art from local artists to use in public spaces.
During Thursday’s committee of the whole meeting, council received a presentation from Andrea Dawes of the Prince Edward County Arts Council. During her presentation she spoke about the strong local arts community, and how the program can leverage the abundance of local artists to improve public spaces.
After the presentation, the committee discussed the plan presented by staff. Mayor Steve Ferguson said that having a policy like this is long overdue.
“The role of public art is, it adds vibrancy and interest to our community,” said Mayor Ferguson. “It makes up for what can be dull and drab in the same way that I think patios have created real vibrancy since we’ve allowed them.”
The total budget for the program is $60,000 per year, with a total of $180,000 over the planned three-year life of the program. Each year $30,000 will go towards the administration of the program, and the other $30,000 will go towards the art itself.
After passing the committee, the plan was sent to council for final approval.
