First attempt failed on policy for new county building.

The “designing women” of the Leelanau County Board of Commissioners will try again this month to convince a majority of the board to adopt an “artwork and wall usage policy” for the new Government Center.

The board last month failed to adopt a policy recommended by its “interior design subcommittee” following a 3-3 vote of the board.

“We had three ‘no’ voters who are apparently afraid of artists for some reason,” quipped subcommittee chairman Mary Tonneberger. The District No. 4 commissioner was absent from the Nov. 20 meeting where a motion to adopt her subcommittee’s recommended policy failed in a tie.

Had Tonneberger been present at the Nov. 20 meeting, a motion to adopt the “art policy” for the new facility would likely have carried in a 4-3 vote. Tonneberger said she expects to be in attendance at this month’s county board meeting.

“I have put this issue on the agenda of our executive committee meeting on Dec. 11; and I expect that the board will adopt a policy in December,” Tonneberger said.

The two other subcommittee members are District No. 7 commissioner Melinda Lautner and District No. 1 commissioner Jean Watkoski. Joining Lautner and Watkoski in voting in support of the subcommittee’s recommendation last month was District No. 5 commissioner David “Chauncey” Shiflett.

The policy as presented would have established an Art Advisory Panel consisting of four to six local artists who would assist in the selection and placement of artwork and other materials in the new courthouse and office building once the facility is completed early next year. The policy would also have established an “art for purchase” and a “donated art” program.

“We’ll rewrite some of the procedures with an emphasis on what to do with the things that are already up on the walls in the courthouse in Leland, and what should go up in the new Government Center,” Tonneberger said. “We have a lot of historic photos, and I’m sure there are many photos depicting ‘Up North’ scenes that would be appropriate as well. Then we’ll see what we have left in terms of wall space,” she said.

Tonneberger added that she’d spoken to county facilities maintenance director Jerry Culman about placement of photos and art in the new courthouse; the two agreed that “expert” advice should be sought.

“You need a creative, talented eye to figure out where to hang things,” Tonneberger said, “so, we’re not going to just raise a hammer to the walls and mess this up.”

The subcommittee met on Nov. 27 and moved forward on several fronts unrelated to the “art policy,” according to minutes of the meeting. Following a discussion with interior design consultant Joan VanPutten and representatives of an office furniture supplier, the subcommittee voted 3-0 to recommend that county administrator David W. Gill to sign a purchase agreement for a “furniture package.”

The subcommittee also discussed the status on contents of a “time capsule” that will be sealed into the building. Committee members said the sealing of the time capsule will be held at an open house, “sometime in Spring 2008.”

Gill informed the subcommittee that he had obtained some prices from a local outdoor furniture company, and that he had sent out five packages for bidding on signage for the new Government Center.