All posts by BenIndy

Arts Benicia, Benicia, Benicia City Council, Benicia's Budget Crisis, Vice-Mayor Terry Scott

Vice Mayor Scott on Restructuring Benicia’s Boards and Commissions: ‘The Arts and Economic Development Can Thrive Together’

Benicia Vice Mayor Terry Scott

By Benicia Vice Mayor Terry Scott, received July 8, 2024

Note: A number of these points have been made on the record, noted during the 6/25 City Council discussion on this subject.

I am opposed to the proposed consolidation of the Arts and Culture Commission (ACC), Human Services Board (HSB), and the Parks, Recreation, and Cemetery Commissions into a single entity.

This plan, while well-intentioned in its aim to reduce monthly staff support, fails to recognize the unique and vital contributions each commission makes to our community.

The HSB’s mission as a granting organization is to provide a safety net for the most vulnerable among us. Its specialized focus on social services cannot be overstated, as it ensures that those in need and receive the targeted support they require.

The ACC, with its dual mission of creating and supporting public art initiatives and creating and supporting cultural events, enriches our community’s cultural landscape.

From Shakespeare in the Park to supporting local arts organizations like the Benicia Ballet and the Old Town Theatre, the ACC’s role is multifaceted and requires dedicated oversight.

The Voena choir rehearsing at First Baptist church in Benicia, Calif., in 2012.| Liz Hafalia / The Chronicle.

In addition, ACC also manages on-going grantor programs for Arts Benicia, VOENA,  Benicia Performing Arts Foundation, Makers Space and Benicia Literary Arts .

Combining these groups, along with Parks, Rec and Cemeteries  into one large committee dilutes their individual effectiveness and undermines their ability to serve the distinct needs of our community.

A newly comprised seven-member committee cannot possibly manage the diverse needs, budgets, and intricacies of the grantor process that these individual commissions oversee.

Furthermore, the suggestion does not directly address the needs of our aging population. As we have seen in the Parks Master plan and witnessed on our streets, Benicia is aging.

To meet the challenges this demographic shift presents, we need a dedicated City Commission on Aging, not a mere mention in a consolidated group’s mission.

If staff reduction is the goal, let us find ways to support and enhance the work of these commissions, which play an irreplaceable role in the fabric of our community. 

But if we cannot continue to maintain independent stand alone commissions due to the need to reduce staff involvement, we must look at new opportunities for staff time reduction.

 I offer the following thoughts on how to potentially accomplish the task by matching Benicia commissions to need based on similar visions.

“Terry Scott Supports the Arts.” | Uncredited image.

Combining the Arts and Culture Commission with Economic Development Board  can create a more cohesive strategy for driving both cultural and economic growth. This approach aligns with the concept of creative placemaking where arts and culture are integrated into community development to enhance the quality or and economic prosperity. 

For example, as ACC Chair Neema Hekmat has noted, the National Endowment for the Arts has highlighted how  arts can be a powerful tool for community transformation and economic development. 

Similarly, merging the Human Services Board with the Family Resource Center could streamline services and provide a more robust support system for disadvantaged groups.  Our Family Resource Center serves as a hub for various support services that is a  match with HSB’s mission of addressing the needs of vulnerable populations.

This integration can lead to more efficient use of resources and better outcomes for the community and possibly avoid redundant staffing needs. 

Combining HSB with FRC, and then ACC with EDB, could help  keep these functions separate but integrated into two existing commissions, which seems practical and focused on leveraging the strengths of each area. It ensures that arts and economic development can thrive together, while human services and family resources support can provide a comprehensive safety net.

How do you envision the implementation of these changes? Are there specific steps or strategies you think would be crucial for a smooth transition? 

Merging the Arts and Culture Commission with the Economic Development Board could potentially offer several benefits:

  1. Streamlined Processes: Combining the commissions could lead to more efficient operations by reducing redundancy and improving coordination between the financial impact of arts, culture, and city long term initiatives and economic development.
  2. Enhanced Grant Opportunities: A unified commission might have a stronger position when applying for grants, as it could present a more comprehensive approach to community development that includes both economic and cultural growth.
  3. Business Orientation: The merger could foster a closer relationship between the arts community and local businesses, potentially leading to more opportunities for economic partnerships and sponsorships. The ACC has shown its financial impact on Benicia.
  4. Integration: Combining of two economic focused commission engines could  support more effective marketing and calendar tools and all designed to create a destination for visitors

Similar to merging the ACC and EDB, there are many benefits to merging the Human Services Board with the Family Resource Center:

  1. Integrated Services: A merger could lead to a more holistic approach to service delivery ensuring that individuals and families receive coordinated support tailored to their comprehensive needs.
  2. Efficiency: By pooling resources and expertise, the combined entity could operate more efficiently, reducing duplication of efforts and streamlining administrative processes.
  3. Enhanced Support: The merger could strengthen the support network for marginalized groupps by providing a single point of access to a wider range of services.
  4. Community Outreach: A unified organization might have a greater capacity for outreach and advocacy, raising awareness of available services and potentially reaching a broader segment of the community need.
  5. Big Vision: Could CAC, HSB and FRC be combined into one unit? It’s important to note that the unique staffing, overall needs and contributions of creating a safety net for our most needy and disadvantaged residents might be possible by combining the Human Services Board, Family Resource Center, and Benicia Housing Authority.

There is still time to get involved:

Attend a special commission meeting tonight, on Monday, July 8, 2024, at 5:30pm, where the commission will be ideating concepts for a new structure. More information can be found here: https://benicia.granicus.com/AgendaViewer.php?view_id=1&event_id=2106

Arts Benicia, Benicia, Benicia City Council, Benicia's Budget Crisis

Reminder! Show Up at 5:30pm to Help Our Arts & Culture Commission

Vice Mayor Terry Scott served as the Chair of the Benicia Arts and Culture Commission before his election to office in 2022. Thanks to Scott and the commission’s Public Art Committee, traffic light boxes, benches, and more got colorful makeovers in service to street beautification and boosting Benicia’s identity as a cultural arts center. | Adrienne Rockwell / Benicia Magazine.

Message from Benicia’s Arts and Culture Commission Chair Neema Hekmat, received July 7, 2024:

I would like to invite Benicia residents to attend a special Arts & Culture meeting this Monday, July 8, where we will be ideating on a new structure to more efficiently and effectively support arts and culture in Benicia.

You are all aware that ACC is at risk of being dissolved with the budget pressures.  There is a new structure on the table that would consolidate three commissions into one; however, there have been significant concerns raised around loss of focus on arts and culture in this new structure and less interest to invest resources into it.  (For more on this, click here.)
The Benicia Arts and Culture Commission, in partnership with Vallejo Shakespeare, presented  William Shakespeare’s Much Ado About Nothing at the Benicia Marina Pavilion in 2022. The performance was free and open to the public. | Benicia Magazine.
We want to put something on the table that addresses the budget needs without creating more issues.  If anything, I am hoping that we can find a structure that negates existing challenges and barriers and allows us to serve the community more effectively than before.  So this challenge may be an opportunity for a true WIN-WIN.
The commission can’t do this alone and we need everyone who cares about arts and culture to step up and be actively involved.  City council may make a decision soon and we need your support to prevent a decision with major repercussions.
This is the time to be LOUD.
Participating in this session is one key forum where you can make a difference.   Please forward this message to anyone you think would like to be involved.  More info on the session is available at this link.
Hope to see you tonight!

There are two ways that you can get involved:

  1. Attend a special commission meeting this Monday, July 8th, 2024, at 5:30pm, where we will be ideating concepts for a new structure. More information can be found here: https://benicia.granicus.com/AgendaViewer.php?view_id=1&event_id=2106
  2. If you cannot attend this meeting but want to express your idea/opinion/thoughts, please submit a public comment in writing by emailing it to Helaine Bowles at hbowles@ci.benicia.ca.us.

If you want your comment to be considered during the session, please submit your comment by noon PST on July 8.

Artist Josie Grant’s ‘Jungle’ piano features a rainforest lush with plants and vibrantly populated by colorful animals. This and other pieces of public art were sponsored by Benicia’s Arts and Culture Commission, which faces a reduction in financial support from the City. | Photo by Will Stockton.
Arts Benicia, Benicia, Benicia City Council, Benicia's Budget Crisis

Mon., July 8: Arts and Culture Commission Calls for Community Action to Boost Benicia’s Creative Future

Artist Josie Grant’s ‘Jungle’ piano features a rainforest lush with plants and vibrantly populated by colorful animals. This and other pieces of public art were sponsored by Benicia’s Arts and Culture Commission, which faces a reduction in financial support from the City. | Photo by Will Stockton.

Message from Benicia’s Arts and Culture Commission Chair Neema Hekmat, posted on NextDoor July 5, 2024:

As Chair of the Benicia Arts and Culture Commission, I invite residents to get involved and help us find a more efficient and effective structure to support Arts and Culture in Benicia.

As you may know, the City is facing major budget challenges and there are calls to develop a more efficient structure for the City’s boards and commissions (the Arts and Culture commission being one of them). However what is also true is that Arts and Culture is not only vital and integral to Benicia’s identity (and why people love Benicia), it has also proven to generate significant ROI for the City.

As we reported in the 2024 Annual Report to City Council last month, there was over 730% ROI for Benicia businesses generated from grants provided to arts and culture. Meaning for every $1 invested, over $7 came back to the City in DIRECT revenue (indirect revenue streams are incremental).

Thus, Arts and Culture is not just something that makes us feel good, it provides tangible benefits for our community that are must haves for our future.

To say it simply, a thriving Arts and Culture means a thriving Benicia.

There are two ways that you can get involved:

  1. Attend a special commission meeting this Monday July 8th, 2024, at 5:30pm, where we will be ideating concepts for a new structure. More information can be found here: https://benicia.granicus.com/AgendaViewer.php?view_id=1&event_id=2106
  2. If you cannot attend this meeting but want to express your idea/opinion/thoughts, please submit a public comment in writing by emailing it to Helaine Bowles at hbowles@ci.benicia.ca.us.

If you want your comment to be considered during the session, please submit your comment by noon PST on July 8.

Bakken Crude, Tar sands crude, Valero Benicia Refinery, Valero Crude By Rail

Benicia escaped the peril of Tar Sands Crude by rail; now it’s on the Carquinez Strait

Valero Benicia Refinery was first in line, buys a shipload of Canadian tar sands crude, receiving it along the Strait

The Benicia Independent, July 2, 2024
Carquinez Strait looking toward Vallejo, photo by Calmuziclover – Flickr, Creative Commons

Canada’s Trans Mountain Pipeline is in its first month of supplying heavy tar sands crude from Edmonton to Canada’s west coast. According to a July 1 Reuters article (see below), Valero’s Benicia Refinery is among the first to buy and ship this volatile crude oil.

In an earlier June 12 article, Reuters reported that recent concerns have arisen over high sulfur content of this crude, and its high acidity and vapor pressure, “conditions that could damage refining equipment or increase air pollution.” Of course, Valero has joined with Chevron and Canadian oil companies in protesting current limits on vapor pressure.

Reuters reports the departure on July 1 of 20 ships loaded with crude oil, one of which was headed to our quaint village. How long does a ship take to get here? When did – or will – the ship slog along our Carquinez Strait and dock at Valero? Any of you know how to research this? – BenIndy

Trans Mountain oil pipeline just shy of target for first-month loadings

A drone view of three berths able to load vessels with oil is seen after their construction at Westridge Marine Terminal, the terminus of the Canadian government-owned Trans Mountain pipeline expansion project in Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada, April 26, 2024. REUTERS/Chris Helgren/File Photo

Reuters, by Arathy Somasekhar, July 1, 2024

About 20 ships loaded crude oil on Canada’s West Coast in the first full month of operation on the newly expanded Trans Mountain pipeline, according to vessel-tracking data on Sunday, slightly below the operator’s forecast.

Loadings from the pipeline expansion are closely watched because the Canadian government wants to sell the $24.84 billion (C$34 billion) line. Questions about oil quality, pipeline economics and loading challenges have swirled since its startup, spurring concerns over demand and exports of the crude.

The 20 vessels loaded were less than the 22 ships that Trans Mountain had initially expected to load for the month.

Total crude exports from Vancouver were around 350,000 barrels per day with the last two vessels for June-loading at the Westridge Marine terminal, as of Sunday.

“This first month is just shy of the 350,000-400,000 bpd we expected ahead of the startup. We are still in the discovery phase, with kinks being ironed out … but in the grand scheme of things, this has been a solid start,” said Matt Smith, lead analyst at Kpler.

The vessels, partially loaded Aframaxes able to carry about 550,000 barrels each, mostly sailed to the U.S. West Coast and Asia. Some cargoes were loaded onto larger ships for delivery to India and China, according to data providers LSEG, Kpler and Vortexa.

Reliance Industries bought 2 million barrels of Canadian crude for July delivery, a deal that involved four ship-to-ship transfers to load the oil onto a very large crude carrier offshore California. The oil is destined for Sikka, India, where the company operates the world’s biggest refining complex.

Phillips 66 acquired a cargo for its Ferndale, Washington, refinery, Marathon Petroleum Corp for its Los Angeles refinery,  and Valero Energy Corp for its Benicia, California, refinery .

TMX did not immediately respond ahead of a long weekend in Canada. Phillips 66 and Marathon Petroleum declined to comment, while  Valero  did not reply to a request for comments.

The market was expecting about 17 to 18 loadings, said Rohit Rathod, market analyst at energy researcher Vortexa.

“Chinese demand has been below expectations, and if not for Reliance most of the barrels in June would have remained within the (West Coast) region,” Rathod added.

Trans Mountain this month revised standards for accepting crude oil on its recently expanded system, alleviating worries about the acidity and vapor pressure of the line’s crude oil.

Logistical constraints in a busy, narrow shipping channel after leaving the Westridge dock in Vancouver were also expected to impact loadings. To manage high traffic in the channel, the Port of Vancouver has restrictions on transit times.

The expanded Trans Mountain pipeline is running around 80% full with some spot capacity used. Trans Mountain forecasts 96% utilization from next year. It has capacity to load 34 Aframax ships a month.

(By Arathy Somasekhar in Houston; additional reporting by Nia Williams in British Columbia; Editing by Sherry Jacob-Phillips)

[FYI – More on Google about the Trans Mountain Pipeline (TMX)]