Petaluma hires David Best for public art project

The Petaluma Public Art Committee is moving forward with its second piece of commissioned art, and local artist David Best wants none of the controversy that has been following the first project.

The city council voted unanimously this week to enter into a $75,000 contract with Best, who will craft an installation on a small, city-owned parcel on the Lynch Creek Trail just south of the Lakeville Street railroad crossing.

Best, a world renowned artist known for sculpting intricate and elaborate temples, spoke candidly with the council on Monday, eager to remedy the relationship between the public and the PPAC after the fallout from the Water Street project, “Fine Balance,” by Brian Goggin.

“I don’t want to dump anything on our community that we don’t want,” Best said. “I’m the least bit interested in that. I live here, my family’s here, my kids, my grandkids. I’ll negotiate anything you want. I’m not going to create a problem for you guys. You have my word on that.”

Best was a finalist for the Water Street project, which ultimately went to Goggin of San Francisco in May 2017. However, the PPAC admired Best’s approach to collaborating with local artists and engaging the community, and agreed to commission his talents on a future project, said Planning Manager Heather Hines.

The contract will be split into two phases. The first phase involves researching the site, developing three different concepts, conducting public presentations on two separate dates, and the formation of a draft concept under the stewardship of the PPAC and the city’s development review committee, Hines said.

Once the first phase is complete, the project will come back to the city council for one final approval to trigger phase two. After that, Best will be allowed to form a final concept and, pending PPAC approval, fabrication, installation and a grand unveiling projected in October 2019 will follow.

PPAC projects are funded by fees charged to developers, which are earmarked exclusively for public art.

Best indicated he would like to include a student from area schools to shadow him over the next year to learn how to negotiate public art projects and bring them to life.

“My intention is to involve the community as much as I can,” he said.

The lingering presence of the PPAC’s controversial first project dictated much of the council’s discussion.

“Fine Balance,” which features five replicas of Victorian bathtubs on stilts, has faced overwhelming opposition since renderings of the proposal went viral in April. Residents have opposed the prominent waterfront site, and criticized the committee’s efforts to conduct outreach that adequately involved the public.

In addition to enhancing engagement, the council suggested using some of the committee’s $448,000 budget to get the meetings televised on public access channels, or moving permanently to the council chambers at City Hall. Currently, meetings are held once a month at the Petaluma Arts Center, although larger meetings have been held at the Petaluma Community Center.

“Maybe some of the money in the account can be used for that because I do think the public wants to know about it, and there’s heightened alert,” said Mayor-elect Teresa Barrett. “That kind of interest needs to be acknowledged, and I think this is a good way of doing it.”

Councilman Mike Healy, who wasn’t convinced Lynch Creek was the best site, also introduced the possibility of expanding public art locations to private properties where owners are open to a city-funded project. One suggestion was the corner of E. D Street and Lakeville Street that remains vacant outside of election season when campaign signs litter the space.

Best said he was open to considering a different site, and chose Lynch Creek because he wanted a location with high visibility and heavy foot traffic.

His art has been displayed all over the world. Known best for his temples at Burning Man, Best has earned the adoration of Councilman Gabe Kearney, who has visited the revered Temple Crew camp at the festival.

Through that experience, growing familiar with his reputation at Black Rock Desert, Kearney anticipates a high level of communal collaboration as the project moves forward.

“Seeing the creativity in the artwork and the inclusion of folks from our community in that piece, it gives me assurance that Mr. Best is committed to having the vision of the community and input of the community,” said Kearney. “He is going to value their voice, so I’m very excited about this piece.”

(Contact News Editor Yousef Baig at yousef.baig@arguscourier.com or 776-8461, and on Twitter @YousefBaig.)