REPORT TO ARTS COMMISSION
SUBJECT
Title
Courtyard by Marriott/T2 Development Public Art Component
Report
BACKGROUND
Under the City's Art in Private Development Ordinance, the Courtyard by Marriott project at 660 El Camino Real is required to provide public art. The public art component must be equal in value to 1 percent of the building permit valuation. The procedure established for reviewing the artwork is as follows:
1) Review the artist's background to ensure he/she has the experience and knowledge to design, fabricate and install a large-scale artwork;
2) Review the artwork itself to determine whether or not the nature and style of the artwork is appropriate to the architecture and site;
3) Determine whether or not the proposed artwork is appropriate in scale for the overall development; and
4) Review the location of the artwork for visibility to the public.
The purpose of this memo is to provide information about the proposed artwork and to request Arts Commission approval of the final design. The City Council is not scheduled to consider this item. Under the Art in Private Development Ordinance the Arts Commission is authorized to make a final determination of the proposed artwork. The Commission's decision may be appealed to the City Council by the developer.
EXISTING POLICY
Municipal Code
Chapter 19.52. Required Artwork in Private Developments
The purpose of this chapter is to regulate and establish standards for inclusion of publicly visible artworks in development projects which are either large in scale or have unique visual impacts due to their location on principal avenues of travel or at landmark intersections characterized as areas of concentrated public activity (Ordinance 2623-99 § 1 (part): Prior Zoning Code § 19.49.010).
Arts Sub-Element
Policy E.1.: Encourage alternative funding sources, funding strategies and incentives to provide and encourage the provision of art in public and private development.
Policy E.2.: Provide and encourage the incorporation of art, both functional and decorative, in public and private development.
Community Design Sub-Element
Policy A.1: Identify the boundaries of the City with attractive and distinctive features.
Policy A.1.d: Continue to develop a comprehensive gateway improvement program to select major gateways for improvements such as special landscaping, signage, visitor information centers, patterned pavement, monuments or artwork and unique private development standards.
Policy A.3: Support measures which enhance the identity of special districts and residential neighborhoods to create more variety in the physical environment.
Policy A.3.e: Encourage new landmarks and features to distinguish districts and neighborhoods.
DISCUSSION
Project: T2 Development is building a new four-story, 145-room Courtyard by Marriott. The hotel will be L-shaped and situated directly adjacent to El Camino Real. Parking for the site will be behind the hotel, with a single vehicular entrance from El Camino Real. There will also be a pedestrian entrance from El Camino Real right of way into the main lobby.
This site is the former home of Sunnyvale Chevrolet. It is bordered on the south by a new residential development, to the east and west by a mixture of commercial and residential development, and to the north by the Sunnyvale Civic Center. (Attachment 1 - Street Map)
Artwork Location: The selected location for the proposed artwork is along the El Camino Real on either side of the main pedestrian entrance to the hotel. (Attachment 2 - Site Map and Attachment 3 - Elevation Plan with Proposed Artwork) This location is set back approximately 15 feet from El Camino Real. Foot traffic in the area has traditionally been limited, but it is expected to increase once the hotel is occupied. Staff also anticipates a large volume of vehicular traffic traveling along El Camino Real.
Selected Artist: The artist selected for this project is Southern California artist Cliff Garten. (Attachment 4 - Artist's Resume) Mr. Garten has been active in the public art arena since 1998. He has received civic commissions for major U.S. cities such as: Fort Worth, Texas; Scottsdale, Arizona; Madison, Wisconsin; Santa Monica, California; Cleveland, Ohio; Saint Paul, Minnesota; and Salt Lake City, Utah. Locally, Mr. Garten has major public commissions at the Tully Library in San Jose; Laguna Honda Hospital in San Francisco; and the Veterans Memorial Plaza, Walnut Creek. In 2012, Mr. Garten completed a large environmental sculpture installation as part of the Moffett Towers project in north Sunnyvale.
Mr. Garten was also approved by the Commission as the project artist for the Moffett Place project at the March 2014 Arts Commission meeting.
Images of Mr. Garten's installations and sculpture environments can be found at cliffgartenstudio.com.
Artwork Proposal: For this project, the artist has designed two stainless steel sculptures that will be located on either side of the steps leading from El Camino Real to the hotel lobby. (Attachments 5, 6 and 7 - Computer Renderings of Proposed Artwork) The sculptures mimic a classical vessel form and are meant to formalize the main entryway from El Camino Real to the hotel.
Standing 11' tall, the sculptures are made of 3/8" stainless steel rods that are hand molded and spaced so that the vessel form is transparent. The first 5' of each sculpture rises from a solid stainless steel hexagonal pedestal into a vase-like body. At the midpoint of this body the rods begin to twist, rotating 180 degrees to the top of the sculpture. As the rods twist upward, the form's transparency allows the rods on the opposite side of the form to create a moiré pattern. This pattern becomes more interesting in changing sunlight or when illuminated with colored light at night.
During the day the sculptures will reflect and refract natural sunlight. At night they will be up-lit with four colored LED lights located in the base of the sculpture. Because of the transparency of the form, the sculptures will appear to be illuminated from within. The colors will slowly change, creating a light show for viewers. The light show will be programmed and controlled from within the hotel and can be changed for special events or holidays.
Lighting: The developer is proposing to up-light each sculpture on all four sides from the ground level with LED lights.
Maintenance: Maintenance for the proposed artwork will be minimal. The sculptures should be pressure washed annually to remove dirt buildup. The LED lights will need to be changed every five years.
FISCAL IMPACT
If approved, the developer will be responsible for design, fabrication and installation costs of the artwork, as well as ongoing maintenance. There is no fiscal impact on the City's operating budget other than incidental staff time to monitor the project, which is budgeted in the Art in Private Development Program.
PUBLIC CONTACT
Public contact was made by posting the Arts Commission agenda on the City's official-notice bulletin board in the Library and Senior Center. The agenda and full report were posted on the City's Web site and in the Recreation Center at the Community Center.
ALTERNATIVES
1. Approve the artwork as it is proposed.
2. Not approve the artwork as it is proposed.
RECOMMENDATION
Recommendation
Alternative 1: Approve the artwork as it is proposed.
Staff
Prepared by: Kristin Dance, Visual Arts Coordinator
Reviewed by: Tegan McLane, Arts and Marketing Manager
Approved by: Daniel Wax, Superintendent of Community Services
Cc: Lisa Rosenblum, Director, Department of Library and Community Services
Attachments
ATTACHMENTS
1. Street Map
2. Site Map
3. Elevation Plan with Proposed Artwork
4. Artist's Resume
5. Computer Rendering of Proposed Artwork (detail)
6. Computer Rendering of Proposed Artwork (from street)
7. Computer Rendering of Proposed Artwork (from sidewalk)