Urge the county to support the arts

If you agree that public places should incorporate the arts, I encourage you to urge the Fairfax County Planning Commission to approve the Visual and Performing Arts Policy Plan Amendment to the Fairfax County Comprehensive Plan. The commission will hear the amendment March 10.

The amendment would encourage new public and private developments to provide space for the arts; it would not require them to do so, nor would it provide any funding. For example, a building could provide space for a choral group to perform or allow local artists to display their paintings on a hallway. It also encourages the development of new performance venues, the use of the arts to enhance community and cultural identity, and incorporate art into the design of new buildings.

The amendment notes that “a strong, dynamic, and diverse arts presence in the county provides economic, social, and educational benefits.”  Would you rather work in or visit a beautiful, art-filled building with a real sense of place or just another anonymous concrete and glass box?

The idea for the arts amendment grew out of a 2008 report commissioned by the Board of Supervisors on the future of the arts in Fairfax County. To see what’s already been in the county, check out Reston’s initiative for public arts. [The fountain pictured here is in Reston.]

If you agree that the arts are important to the county’s qualify of life, send an e-mail to the commission urging support for the arts policy amendment.