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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes.WHLR.20230308.Regular1 Wheeler Advisory Board Meeting Minutes March 8, 2023, | 3:00 p.m. In Attendance: Wheeler Opera House Advisory Board Members: Chip Fuller, Chair*; Amy Mountjoy, Vice-Chair (Acting as Chair); Dr. Tom Kurt, Secretary; Daniel Benavent*; Nina Gabianelli; Richard Stettner; Jennifer White (ex-officio, MAA); and Lauren Foreman (alternate)* * Attended via Zoom Wheeler Opera House/City of Aspen Staff: Lisa Rigsby Peterson, Executive Director; Alixandra Feeley, Business Manager; Pete Hajdu, Building Supervisor; Nicole Levesque, Marketing Manager; Karen McConnell, Administrative & Artistic Specialist, Craig Moxon, Production Manager; and Maddy Overton, Rentals Coordinator. Absent: No Board members were absent. Meeting Recorder: Karen McConnell ________________________________________________________________________ Acting Chair, Amy Mountjoy, called the meeting to order at 3:01 p.m. Nina Gabianelli moved to approve minutes from the February 8, 2023, board meeting; Dr. Tom Kurt seconded and the Board unanimously approved the minutes. Public Comment Acting Chair Mountjoy requested public comment. None was offered. Richard Stettner noted his need to leave the meeting early and asked to move election of officers to the beginning of the agenda. All agreed. Acting Chair Mountjoy noted the open Wheeler Advisory Board seats were uncontested. It was moved by Nina Gabianelli and seconded by Ziska Childs to re-elect the following officers for additional one year terms: Chip Fuller, Chair Amy Mountjoy, Vice-Chair and Dr. Tom Kurt, Secretary The motion carried unanimously and all above officers were re-elected. 2 Wheeler Updates, Lisa Rigsby Peterson Ms. Rigsby Peterson was excited to share the final draft of the Wheeler Vision Statement and acknowledged the thoughtful process and careful discussion used to craft a statement that would define and guide the work and role of the Wheeler. She thanked the Board, the Wheeler Leadership team and staff, and Clique Studios for their contributions so far, and asked the Board for assistance finalizing the Vision statement. The Vision statement read: At the Wheeler, we set the stage for connections that create *indelible (?) memories for artists, audiences and greater Aspen. After extensive discussion with all present, the Board arrived at the following Vision statement: At Aspen’s Wheeler Opera House, we set the stage for connections that create memories for our audiences, artists and greater community. Ms. Rigsby Peterson sincerely thanked everyone for their participation and let them know that final approval of the vision statement rests with the City Manager. Turning to programming, Ms. Rigsby Peterson shared updates on the recent success of Laugh Fest – the first in 3 years. Over the 5 nights of comedy on-site, the lineup included four women and nearly half of performers were people of color. In addition to great programming, ticket sales were generally good, including the Knock-Knock pass which was very successful. She acknowledged that sales were perhaps negatively impacted by competing weekend events, including the Palm Music Festival. As necessary, Ms. Rigsby Peterson will hold conversations with the City officials regarding potential conflicts around scheduling of future events. Ms. Rigsby Peterson was happy to share updates on spring and summer events, including March 10th’s sold-out performance by John Oates & Guthrie Trapp, DanceAspen’s Winter Program performances, and Bone Hill with Martha Redbone (African American, native American singer). Summer staples will include Fringe Festival, JAS collaborations, and programs by the Music Festival, as well as the continued free Venue History Tour series led by the Historical Society. Ms. Peterson reiterated that always there are artists and genres she’d like to explore and made request of Board members for suggestions which she’s enthusiastic about. Ideas arrive from everywhere and she welcomes them all. For updates on the building, Ms. Rigsby Peterson shared that the boiler replacement project will be completed in 2023 due to earlier than expected arrival at end of life for the current equipment. While extensively discussed, at this time electric boilers are not being considered due to limitation of power and infrastructure, but an eventual replacement to electric is on the long- range plan. As an update on the rigging system, Ms. Rigsby Peterson shared that the inspection company assessed that the Douglas Fir beams are structurally sound. Additional information regarding the design phase should be forthcoming next week and that information will be shared. As a general update, Ms. Rigsby Peterson shared that staff and volunteers are participating in an Active Harmer training presented by the Aspen Police Department on March 9th. Additionally, on Monday, March 13th, she will meet with volunteers and staff to broadly share our vision and focus on diversity and inclusion during our “Connect with a Director” event. 3 Finally, Ms. Peterson offered a quick financial update. As 2022 officially ended, the financial reports were more favorable than we’d anticipated. Revenue higher and lower operating expenses. The Arts and Culture fund now includes the Red Brick and that report will look different. The Wheeler’s financial reports will also be broken out individually. Ms. Peterson indicated the reports will be sent within a week and followed up monthly on an agreed-upon date such as the 5th or 20th of each month. Board Discussion Ms. Mountjoy, acting Chair, opened discussion regarding the Board’s recommendation regarding the lease of Valley Fine Art and the presentation made by Mia Valley the previous month. Ms. Rigsby Peterson reminded the board that the normal city process upon lease expiration is to begin a public Request for Proposals solicitation, and that it is likely that the Council would move forward in this direction. She mentioned that given that, there were two options the board should consider: • Recommend to City Council to extend Valley Fine Art Lease with no public process. • Recommend to City Council a public RFP which would have (2) possible outcomes: o Renewal of the lease or o a new tenant in the space Board discussion followed. The advisory Board decided to recommend to Council that the lease currently held by Mia Valley for Valley Fine Art be extended. Ms. Rigsby drafted the following recommendation and the Executive Committee of the board approved: “The Wheeler Advisory Board recognizes that the City of Aspen’s normal process in advance of lease expiration for a city-owned space is to issue a public Request for Proposals to ensure fairness to the community and to explore all available options. As the lease extension for Valley Fine Art is set to expire on November 30th of this year, the Board respectfully recommends to City Council that the lease currently held by Mia Valley for the Valley Fine Art Gallery be renewed for several reasons. Ms. Valley has been an exceptional tenant, complying with all terms of her lease and remaining open and gracious during extensive Wheeler construction. She runs a locally owned and -operated business whose clientele is largely area residents. Her dedication to and support of the community, including numerous fundraisers she has for local non-profit organizations at her gallery openings, has been remarkable. And her art gallery use of a very small and unusual tenant footprint seems perfectly suited to the Wheeler space which, in the Board’s opinion, would be difficult to fill with other kinds of businesses or usages. For these reasons, we recommend a renewal.” Dr. Kurt moved to adjourn; Nina Gabianelli seconded. The meeting concluded at 4:27 p.m. Future Meetings Schedule April 12, 2023, 3:00 p.m. May 10, 2023, 3:00 p.m. June 14, 2023, 3:00 p.m.