Neighborhood Art Project

In 2003, the City Council of Iowa City endorsed the concept of providing funding for expansion of the Iowa City Public Art program into the neighborhoods of the city. The program, directed to the city's geographically defined neighborhoods, provides funding to the residents of the neighborhood to initiate development of their art programs in their neighborhood.
Some of the purposes for developing art in the neighborhoods are:

   -- Integrating public artwork into neighborhood parks, greenbelt and other public locations.
   -- Building neighborhood cohesion through projects that engage neighbors in creating art in their neighborhoods.
   -- Using art as a way to celebrate, reflect and enhance the character and history of a neighborhood for both the residents of that neighborhood and visitors.
   -- To add interest to neighborhood public spaces (pedestrian oriented, park spaces, etc.)
   -- To create a sense of neighborhood ownership and identification through hands-on participation the project(s).

The resources of the Iowa City Public Arts Committee, City Engineer and Parks personnel are available to advise neighborhood residents regarding their projects. The neighborhood art projects will be reviewed by the Iowa City Public Art Advisory Committee and the City Council, as is done for other public art projects for the city. The same safety etc. criteria applicable to Iowa City public art as drawn up by the ICPAAC will be followed for the neighborhood projects.

To date, four neighborhoods have participated in the Neighborhood Art Project; Longfellow, Goosetown, Northside, and Wetherby Friends and Neighbors.