Page 1 of 10 Request for Qualifications/Proposals Public Art Master Plan – Moline, IL September 10, 2019 Summary: The City of Moline (City), in partnership with Renew Moline, a 501(C)(3) non-profit economic development entity (Renew), is soliciting qualifications and proposals for the development of a Public Art Master Plan. The partners intend to develop a Public Art Master Plan for the downtown Moline area to enhance the urban experience and provide an attractive environment for new development. Background: With a population of approximately 45,000, Moline is the largest city in Rock Island County, Illinois. It is one of the Quad Cities, four mid-sized midwestern cities that straddle the Mississippi River, 165 miles west of Chicago. With its neighboring cities of Bettendorf, Iowa; Davenport, Iowa and Rock Island, Illinois, the area population is almost 400,000, the largest urban area between Minneapolis and St. Louis. Moline’s local economy has a strong corporate presence, including John Deere and KONE, Inc. A recent two-phase, $48 million expansion of Western Illinois University has added a new state university campus to the downtown riverfront. Nearby, IH Mississippi Valley Credit Union construction of its $26m headquarters is scheduled for completion this fall. Downtown hosts the John Deere Pavilion, a visitor and discovery center; as well as a number of national chain hotels and commercial developments. A portion of downtown Moline is a National Register Historic District. The Rock Island Arsenal, home of the First Army Headquarters, employs approximately 6,000 individuals on a 950-acre island immediately adjacent to downtown Moline. Downtown Moline is experiencing a renaissance due to a renewed interest in urban and riverfront living. Completion of the Skinner Block Lofts, the LeClaire Hotel, Berglund Flats, Phillips Lofts and Enterprise lofts have resulted in mixed income and mixed-use development successes that have been a model for downtown redevelopment. Additionally, the restoration of important historic buildings is underway or recently completed. There is a strong interest in adding residential to downtown. Page 2 of 10 Quad Cities Arts & Culture: The Quad Cities is an area that supports art and artists. Moline hosts a number of outdoor festivals annually and is an active part of the Quad Cities’ vibrant arts, craft beer and music scene. Art Experiences: The Quad City Arts Council is an arts advocacy organization that began as a visual arts gallery and re-granting program for local arts; and expanded into an educational residency program for multi-disciplinary arts. Its current programs include a visiting artist series, the Metro Arts program that provides teens paid apprenticeships in the arts, and a sculpture loan program. A number of different venues offer opportunities to see and experience art. These include Putnam Museum, Children’s Museum, Midcoast Fine Arts, Bucktown Center for the Arts, local universities and the Figge Art Museum, among others. The annual Beaux Arts Fair draws art lovers from around the region. Alternating Currents is a new music and performance art venue hosting over 100 performances and a dozen venues. In its third year, the scene includes art, comedy, film and music and is enjoying remarkable success. Other live music experiences are available as well. The Quad City Symphony Orchestra is one of the first orchestras established west of the Mississippi River, and has enjoyed almost 100 years of performances and visiting soloists. Live music can be heard in many smaller venues, or at the River Music Experience (RME) and the 12,000 seat TaxSlayer Center. The Mississippi Valley Blues Fest and annual Bix Beiderbecke Memorial Jazz Festival brings thousands of music lovers to the Quad Cities for a weekend every summer. Ballet Quad Cities is the only professional ballet company in all of Iowa and western Illinois and has company dancers from throughout the U.S., Canada, and Cuba. Throughout the year, they perform in February, April, Ballet Under the Stars in June, October, and The Nutcracker during the holidays. The Quad Cities is home to a number of theatres, including New Ground Theatre, Circa 21 Dinner Playhouse and Playcrafters Barn Theatre all feature theatrical presentations throughout the year. The Quad City Music Guild has an over 60-year tradition of performing Broadway musicals in the Prospect Park Auditorium in Moline, exclusively using Quad Cities’ area performers. There are Page 3 of 10 many other small theatres in the area, including the Black Box Theatre, Genesius Guild Theatre, Spotlight Theatre and others. A Significant Opportunity: Moline has a unique opportunity to enhance and create a memorable arrival experience in its downtown. A $1.2 billion I-74 bridge connecting Illinois and Iowa over the Mississippi is currently under construction. Aesthetic features of the bridge include a 14-foot bike and pedestrian path, LED lighting and a scenic overlook that includes illuminated vertical identity elements. Additionally, when the existing bridge is demolished on the Illinois side, more than 13 acres of downtown/riverfront property will be offered http://i74riverbridge.com for redevelopment (See Attachment A). The City would like to use space created in these new areas, at least in part, for public art. Renew Moline: Renew Moline, is an award-winning, non-profit economic development organization devoted to working with the City of Moline on riverfront and other development. Renew Moline is the link between the development community; elected officials and staff; regional and state economic development partners; local businesses; and business owners and entities interested in investment in Moline. Partnering with the City of Moline to implement the City’s comprehensive plan and creating a vibrant downtown, especially as it relates to the riverfront, are Renew Moline’s priorities. Page 4 of 10 The Public Art Master Plan Scope of Work and Budget: The City and Renew seek individuals and firms (“Consultant”) experienced in creating master plans for art and/or directing strategic planning within the arts community. The Public Art Master Plan will be developed in a public, transparent and collaborative process and will apply to the Moline Centre Plan area and limited (three to four) “special areas” in adjacent neighborhoods (See Attachment B). The consultant shall produce a detailed and illustrative document to be considered for adoption by the Moline City Council. Ultimately, the document should generally: • Define and describe public art, to educate and inform the public about the role of art in community building; • Inventory existing public art assets and features; • Establish and promote a clear vision for public art that aligns with the City’s economic development and urban design goals; • Identify opportunity areas and specific locations for art with an emphasis on enlivening public spaces, creating a sense of place; unifying and identifying neighborhoods, and respecting the city’s historical and physical characteristics. These can be “gateways”, connections to the riverfront and between neighborhoods, and/or physical structures but should be descriptive enough to encourage and guide the implementation of art features in the public realm; • Create public art policies and criteria for review of public art gifts; • Recommend a process for the implementation of the plan, including solicitation and selection of artwork and a governance structure; and • Identify costs and potential funding sources for public art features/elements. Tasks and Work Program Task 1 –Meetings and Administration: • Attend kickoff meeting with City and Renew staff to review contracted scope of work, schedule and roles and responsibilities; • Project and contract management tasks necessary to complete all tasks; and • Meet throughout the contract period with project team consisting of City and Renew staff as well as a nine-member Steering Committee (anticipated at least four times but no more than six). Videoconferencing is available for most meetings. Task 1 Deliverables: • Conduct kickoff meeting (agenda, agenda approval, meeting activity and summary) • Project schedule for endorsement by client • Accounting, invoicing, monitoring and completing tasks and reporting progress • Meeting summary (including task list) and schedule update for each meeting Page 5 of 10 • Meeting with Steering Committee to review purpose, process and progress (may be conducted with project team meetings and/or site visit). Task 2 – Background Research • Review Moline City Plans pertaining to Moline Centre to identify potential locations, corridors and themes for public art. Plans include: Moline Centre Plan, Moline Comprehensive Plan Updates, Moving Moline Forward Plan, Moline Streetscape Master Plan, 7th Avenue Reconstruction & Connector Project, River Drive Corridor Study, River to River Corridor Study, Moline Centre Design Guidelines, Moline Park Master Plan); • Conduct site visit; • Identify existing programs and activities related to public art in both Moline (and the Quad Cities, where applicable to Moline); • Provide “best practices” research and application in Moline to guide development of the Public Art Master Plan; and • Assemble a catalogue of no more than five successful Public Art Master Plans from similarly sized cities throughout the country. These plans should act as relevant examples and have evident results by which to gauge success and should include a variety of potential (and feasible) funding sources for