Keys SPCA wants to bypass public art requirement

The Florida Keys SPCA wants a doggone break from the city of Key West.

At issue: The SPCA’s new $8.4 million building on Stock Island falls under the city’s requirement that 1 percent of all new construction that exceeds $500,000 be set aside for public art.

The SPCA wants the City Commission, which postponed making a decision at its Wednesday night meeting at City Hall, to find the agency exempt under a provision attached to the Art in Public Places law that allows such a break to nonprofits on a case-by-case basis.

The SPCA raised most of the funding for the new building from private donors.

“We’re a nonprofit providing a Key West code-mandated function, which is animal control,” said Jeff Johnson, president-elect of the SPCA’s board.

The request, which comes after the city waived $150,000 worth of permits for the animal control agency, didn’t sit well with Commissioner Margaret Romero.

“We're going to have every nonprofit that comes forward asking for the same thing,” Romero said about the proposal sponsored by Commissioner Sam Kaufman. “It's not a precedent I want to set.”

Romero, however, was the only commissioner to explicitly oppose the proposed resolution. Commissioner Clayton Lopez asked the panel to postpone the matter so the Art in Public Places board and the SPCA could perhaps work out a compromise.

Key West law says that certain nonprofits may have the art requirement waived if they can show “a valid public purpose.” The SPCA’s public purpose is providing animal control for Key West, Kaufman says.

Kaufman added the SPCA should get the waiver “so that the limited funding resources that remain for the new animal shelter can be used to complete construction and provide essential equipment and supplies to meet the FKSPCA mission.”

The shelter’s request irked some in Key West, including Art in Public Places Chairman Richard Tallmadge.

“This is a singular opportunity to invest $65,000 into public art that will last through generations,” Tallmadge said. “Art is vital to our lives. Without art and artists, there is no humanity.”

PAL gym

Also Wednesday, the commission heard from city staff about the feasibility of renovating the Police Athletic League building that currently serves as a gym for youngsters.

“We believe we’re looking at a $4 million project,” said Jim Bouquet, engineering director for the city.

Early sketches provided by architect Erica Poole of K2M Design in Key West show a new building that would include new stables for police horses, storage for public works and public restrooms, which Kaufman said are lacking at the Truman Waterfront Park.

Currently, there are only portable restroom trucks parked outside of the PAL gym. Funding will likely come from the 2019-20 budget, Bouquet said.

This story was originally published January 6, 2018 at 8:43 AM with the headline "Keys SPCA wants to bypass public art requirement."