City Council Study Session Summary 2011 05 24

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City Council Study Session Summary May 26, 2011 Page 2 of 5 Secretary, Susan Honstein, Brett Nickerson, Emma Shubin, and Paul Beckman (absent). The Board's 2010 Accomplishments, 2011 Goals and Progress were presented. The Cultural Council organizes events such as the Coffeehouse Concerts, the Summer Concert Series, Art in the Park and many other cultural events that benefit the arts community. The Coffeehouse concerts have tripled attendance in the 3 years they have been offered. The Summer Concerts series at Community Park is a popular event that brings families to the park venue, drawing 400 to 500 attendees on Thursday night. In 2010, the Cultural Council launched Art in the Park and the Council is currently in the process of fundraising to purchase the People's Choice Sculpture, "Clorese," a whimsical fish that is located by the frog pond at Community Park. The Cultural Council worked with the Louisville Art Association to bring the 2nd Congressional District Art Competition to the Louisville Recreation Center. Council members seek out grant opportunities to support funding these cultural events and putting on events at a low cost or no -cost to the public. Mayor Sisk acknowledged there have been cuts in funding since 2009 and appreciates the Cultural Council doing more with less. He encouraged events that get children involved. Maryan Jaross thanked Council for the funding and their support and thanked Kathy Martin and Julie Seydel for their staff support. Update /Discussion — Horticulture & Forestry Advisory Board Theresa Rounds presented on behalf of the Board. Other members present were Ellen Toon, Matt Tepe, and Kimberly Heestand. Shelly Alm, Meredith Eddy and Mike Frontczak were not present. The Board presented their 2010 Accomplishments, and shared 2011 Goals and Progress to date. Electricity has been installed at the Arboretum shelter. The hope is that with electricity and a future plan for a restroom facility, the Arboretum could be rented for special events and the revenue could be split 50/50 between Arboretum maintenance and the 501(c)3, Friends of the Arboretum. The Board sponsored a successful tree planting on Arbor Day with the help of girl and boy scouts and Louisville residents. Drip irrigation installed at each tree was made possible by grant money received from the Colorado Tree Coalition and Xcel Energy. The Board was able to comment on landscape plans for City projects and appreciated how receptive staff was to their comments. For the second year in a row, the Friends of the Arboretum sponsored a lecture series. The group is looking for ways to increase attendance, but more people did attend the sessions this year than last year.