Local artist Jon Murrill has been selected to lead the community’s renewal of the South Jefferson Street wall at the River’s Edge North Park.
The artist was selected by a community panel representing the surrounding neighborhood and stakeholders. With a mix of abstract and figurative art, Mr. Murrill’s proposal captures the energy of the community in a vibrant palette.
The panel was impressed by the quality of the proposal and the thought the artist put into a plan to connect and engage the community through volunteer painting days. Work will begin in August. Watch for volunteer opportunities here and follow @artinroanoke on social media.
BACKGROUND
The City of Roanoke is seeking artists to design and fabricate public art at a site bordering River’s Edge Park – North. Specifically, the City of Roanoke is seeking to hire an Artist or an Artist Team to create a specific design or a general concept for the project. Artists must be flexible about the final outcome of the project and willing to cooperate with the input of community members on the execution of the project.
Background and Site Information:
The Roanoke Arts Commission’s “River’s Edge Mural” project seeks to engage an Artist or an Artist Team in developing a public art project on the side of the South Jefferson Street foundation wall. This project will be funded through the City’s Percent for Art Program.
River’s Edge Park – North was renovated in 2020 with new, multi-use Bermuda grass athletic fields, lighting, scoreboards, parking lot, fountain feature, magnolia walkway, and greenway connector. It is also home to the ADA accessible Maher Baseball Field, eight tournament-ready and recently renovated, ADA-accessible tennis courts. River’s Edge North is one of the busiest parks in Roanoke. Many large events and festivals take place in the park. The park recently won an award from the Virginia Sports Turf Association.
Beyond the wall are the multistoried and growing towers Roanoke Memorial Hospital and other healthcare facilities and the trails, amenities and overlooks of Mill Mountain. It is neighbored by the research buildings of Carilion Clinic, including the Virginia Tech Carilion School of Medicine. South Jefferson Street, the road that sits above the foundation wall, creates Roanoke’s Innovation Corridor, stretching from the Carilion complex to Downtown Roanoke.
Bordering the park are the Roanoke River and Franklin Road. The wall is visible to passing traffic on US-220 in the distance. The Roanoke River Greenway and railroad tracks run adjacent to the park just across the river.
Specific opportunities are for the work to:
a. Reflect on the natural environment, historic context and promising community future contributed to by the activity and assets in the immediate area.
b. Create a vibrancy worthy of the action that takes place on the fields.
c. Highlight the role of individuals in the development of a strong team, a healthy community, and a vibrant place.
d. Tell a story understood from a variety of physical vantage points.
Qualification
The project is open to all artists and artist teams. Student, youth and community involvement is encouraged, if led by a qualified adult able to engage volunteers, creating a safe and rewarding experience. All applicants, regardless of race, age, sex, religion, nationality, origin, or disability will be considered. The City encourages Small, Women owned, and Minority-owned business to submit a response to this URFP.
Scope of Services:
A description and/or listing of the services and/or items that the Successful Offeror will be required to provide to the City under this URFP are those that are set forth in this URFP and/or below and/or referred to in any way in the sample Contract. Offeror should carefully read and review all such items and should address such items in its proposal. However, the final description of the services and/or items to be provided to the City under this URFP is subject to negotiations with the successful Offeror(s), and final approval by the City.
A. Artist Responsibilities:
- The Successful Offeror should furnish all equipment, materials, goods, labor and services necessary to design, fabricate and install public art.
- The Successful Offeror is responsible for any liability insurance the City deems necessary for this project. The City is not liable under any circumstances.
- The project should be completed in a timely manner. Work should be completed no later than November 15, 2023.
- The artwork must use durable materials suitable for outside elements and change in temperature and as impervious to vandalism as possible.
- The artwork shall require little or no maintenance, and should include antigraffiti measures.
B. City Responsibilities: - The City will provide, where possible, equipment needs such as ladders, safety cones and vests as well as arrange access to the site.
- The City will power wash areas of the wall as necessary before the installation of the artwork.
- The City will handle marketing and public relations for this project including planning a dedication and/or celebration at the conclusion of the project.
- The City will help facilitate further participation with the community if desired. C. Proposed Timeline (Subject to Change):
- Responses due by 2 PM, Tuesday, February 7, 2023
- Roanoke Arts Commission votes on proposals on February 21, 2023
- Artists notified by February 28, 2023
- Successful Offeror(s) shall complete work by November 15, 2023
Budget: This project is funded by City of Roanoke funds through the Percent for Art program. The total project costs shall not exceed $25,000. Projects over $10,000 require a signed contract.
URFP Submittals:
Offeror should submit proposal(s); one (1) original, marked as such and one (1) redacted copy, marked as such. Each Offeror should carefully read and review all such items and should address such items in its proposal. However, the final description of the services and/or items to be provided to the City under this URFP is subject to negotiations with the successful Offeror(s), and final approval by the City. - Each proposal, at a minimum, should include the following:
A. Statement of interest, which describes Offeror’s vision for this project and how Offeror’s plan will involve the community in the design and/or execution of the project. The statement should also describe how the proposal responds to the goals developed in the public forums.
B. Contact information for two professional references for which the Offeror has done design or art work in the last five years.
C. A rough sketch or a plan for developing the design with community assistance. The Offeror’s proposed design(s) shall be in the colors the Offeror plans to use. The sketch shall be detailed enough that the committee can get an idea of the artwork.
D. Experience and Capacity: Describe background and related experience demonstrating ability to provide related services and provide a descriptive list of related experience in working with diverse communities and neighborhood scale projects.
E. A current résumé with contact information, including a web site if applicable.
F. A budget to include the following costs: artist design and project management fee, fabrication and installation costs.
The City may also request additional information, clarification, or presentations from any of the Offerors. - This URFP includes the following Attachments:
A. Attachment A – Signature Page
B. Attachment B – Sample Contract
The Successful Offeror selected for this work will be required to sign a Contract similar to Attachment B, subject to any changes that may be authorized by mutual agreement of
the parties. Please review the document carefully. Any conditions to the Contract shall be provided in Offeror’s response.
All responses to this Unsealed Request for Proposal (URFP) shall be electronically submitted on or before 2:00 p.m. on Tuesday, February 7, 2023 to purchase@roanokeva.gov.
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