Spring 2015 Arts & Culture Candidate Surveys: Pasadena City Primary Mayor Election
Candidate order: Jason Hardin, Don Morgan, Jacque Robinson, Allen Shay, Bill Thomson, Terry Tornek
As part of its work to connect voters and candidates, Arts for LA presents these Arts & Culture Candidate Surveys to promote dialogue around issues related to arts education and its benefits.
Survey responses provided by each candidate are for voter information purposes only. Arts for LA does not endorse candidates seeking office. We are committed to fostering respectful, nonpartisan dialogue about issues relating to arts and culture. For more information, please read about our mission and values or our FAQ.
All eligible candidates were contacted to participate in the survey. If you would like to submit new or revise existing responses, please contact Cristina Pacheco at [email protected] or 213-225-7580.
Arts for LA thanks the Pasadena Arts Council for supporting the process as a local partner. The Actors Fund, KCET Artbound, California Alliance for Arts Education, LA2050, LA STAGE Alliance, Latino Arts Network, Otis College of Art and Design, and the Social & Public Art Resource Center (SPARC) served as Regional Partners by promoting Arts & Culture Candidate Surveys throughout Los Angeles County.
Voting for Pasadena City Primary Mayor Election will be held on Tuesday, March 10.
1 seat is available in this election. Elections are at large; voters may vote for any of the eligible candidates in this election.
For more information on where to vote, visit the Los Angeles County Clerk/Registrar-Recorder’s Office website.
Question 1: What was the most meaningful arts and cultural experience you had growing up?
I remember being about 7-years-old, playing in the park across the street from my grandmother's house. As my cousins and I spent the day playing, a large group of folks began assembling something in the middle of the field. After a while, we realized they were putting together a stage, so we started to watch them. As it started to get dark, the stage was finished, complete with scenery and lights. All of a sudden, a play just started out of nowhere. I only remember bits and pieces of that play, but it was the first one I have ever seen, and I thought it was the most interesting thing in the world at that time.
The most meaningful arts and cultural experience I have had in life was working with homeless and run-away youth in San Francisco on projects that used art to explain what they were going through at such a young age. I worked for a year with kids to pour their souls into murals and listened to them tell their stories through profound poetry. As someone who was never particularly artistic in a traditional sense, all of a sudden my world was opened by watching the transformational power of these kids finally having an outlet to share their stories. Art changes the lens through which we see and interpret the world. And if done right, hopefully broadens it.
This candidate has not yet responded.
This candidate has not yet responded.
This candidate has not yet responded.
My parents had a season subscription to the symphony in Brookly & took me as a child. That combined with the fact that my mother played the piano beautifully & my Dad paid his way through college as a musician, meant that music had a key rolw in our home.
This candidate has not yet responded.
This candidate has not yet responded.
This candidate has not yet responded.
This candidate has not yet responded.
This candidate has not yet responded.
This candidate has not yet responded.
This candidate has not yet responded.
Question 2: What do you believe the role of City Council should be in the development and support of the region's cultural infrastructure?
City Council is responsible for setting the tone that represents the identity of our city and the standards to which we hold ourselves. Culture, creativity, and innovation is a strong part of that identity, which means our local elected officials play a vital role in its development and support. I believe that the mayor has to actively promote and participate in programs and activities geared towards expression and exploration in all areas of art, education, and business. Properly supporting how we express ourselves and communicate, will always lead to the progress of any society.
The mayor has a powerful platform to advocate for arts and culture in Pasadena. I intend to use that platform to champion our city in every aspect, including our tremendous cultural programs. The mayor should help establish important partnerships between arts and cultural organizations, city agencies, funders, and residents. This creates a virtuous circle where new attention brings new support, spawning new revenue and programs and thus even more attention. As noted above, I’ll work connect local non-profit groups to better align existing resources. Finally, I will continue my efforts to strengthen arts programming for students because, as an educator, I know that today’s arts students are tomorrow’s future stars.
This candidate has not yet responded.
This candidate has not yet responded.
This candidate has not yet responded.
Pasadena's greatest opportunity for economic growth is as a destination city for hospitality & the arts. Our demographics are changing, 6 new hotels are under development & they are a response/driver to a vibrant cultural environment. The Mayor must make certain that the city does everything it can to support the growth in these areas.
This candidate has not yet responded.
This candidate has not yet responded.
This candidate has not yet responded.
This candidate has not yet responded.
This candidate has not yet responded.
This candidate has not yet responded.
This candidate has not yet responded.
Question 3: How would you champion modifications to, or expansion of, the city's current funding stream for local arts and culture?
To increase resources for local arts and culture, I would begin by tapping into our city's affluent private sector. Historically, the beauty of our city has been built on contributions made by citizens and visitors who wanted nothing more than to leave this city a better place than when they came. It's that kind of love for Pasadena, that will continue to set our city apart from every other city in the world. In addition, I will continue to support more community events that showcase our local talents and artists, giving the, as well as local sponsors, the exposure required to create opportunities in which they can capitalize off their gift, products, and/or services. I also plan to generate resources for local arts and culture, by leveraging Pasadena's enormous brand power and promoting our creative talents, goods, and services to a global market.
As someone who has been a fundraiser for nonprofit organizations for 20 years, I believe the mayor should be a valued asset in directing funding toward the arts. Not only should the city use public funds to support the arts in our city, but private donors should also be flocking to Pasadena to support the wide range of programs we offer, large and small. Our vibrant arts community should be represented as a point of pride for our city and resources should be proportionally dedicated to these programs. Whether connecting arts programs to our schools, or supporting large cultural organizations, the mayor has a huge megaphone to point to the best of what we offer as a city.
This candidate has not yet responded.
This candidate has not yet responded.
This candidate has not yet responded.
Growth in the Transient Occupancy Tax [TOT] is the most likely source 7 is certainly appropriate.
This candidate has not yet responded.
This candidate has not yet responded.
This candidate has not yet responded.
This candidate has not yet responded.
This candidate has not yet responded.
This candidate has not yet responded.
This candidate has not yet responded.
Question 4: What three things would you do to deepen the city's investment in its creative economy (cultural tourism, indirect and direct jobs, nonprofit and for profit)?
First, I would be in favor of using city media outlets and communications to better market and promote local cultural and artistic events, programs, organizations, and activities. Next, I would encourage the city to contract local artists of all kinds to help rehabilitate less attractive properties and areas of our city, such as vacant lots, empty storefronts, and poor landscapes. Lastly, I plan to strengthen the city's relationship with organizations such as Innovate Pasadena, to constantly encourage present and future generations to explore their creativity and entrepreneurial spirit.
Lead an effort to renew a comprehensive and strategic plan for the arts that adequately defines their important role in so many parts of our city, and how they may work together to present Pasadena as a cultural hub. Promote new and existing arts organizations as destinations for visitors who want to enjoy all that Pasadena has to offer. Brand the work of our arts organization as essential to our city and as important for investment by those who wish to improve/enrich/strengthen Pasadena.
This candidate has not yet responded.
This candidate has not yet responded.
This candidate has not yet responded.
I would rely on our incredibly creative staff & Arts commissioners to lead the way along with Terry Lemoncheck & the non-profit sector.
This candidate has not yet responded.
This candidate has not yet responded.
This candidate has not yet responded.
This candidate has not yet responded.
This candidate has not yet responded.
This candidate has not yet responded.
This candidate has not yet responded.
