MINUTES OF A REGULAR MEETING OF THE ARTS AND CULTURE ADVISORY BOARD OF THE CITY OF FORT PIERCE, FLORIDA, HELD IN THE 1ST FLOOR CONFERENCE ROOM, CITY HALL, 100 NORTH U.S. #1, FORT PIERCE, FLORIDA, AT 9:00 A.M. ON TUESDAY, JANUARY 20, 2026.
1.
CALL TO ORDER
Chairperson Lisa Kessler called the January 20, 2026, Arts & Culture Advisory Board meeting to order at 10:09 A.M.
2.
ROLL CALL
- Present:
- Doretha Hair Truesdell, Vice-Chair; Ipyana Abayomi; Lisa Kessler, Chair; Victoria Bush
- Absent:
- Emily Fingerhut
3.
APPROVAL OF MINUTES
a.
Approval of the minutes from the October 28, 2025, Arts and Culture Advisory Board Meeting.
Motion by Vice-Chair Doretha Hair Truesdell, seconded by Ipyana Abayomi to approve the minutes from the October 28, 2025, Arts and Culture Advisory Board meeting.
- AYE:
- Ipyana Abayomi, Victoria Bush, Chair Lisa Kessler, Vice-Chair Doretha Hair Truesdell
4.
COMMENTS FROM THE PUBLIC
Any person who wishes to comment on any subject on this Agenda may be heard at this time. Please sign the sign-up sheet in order to speak. Please limit your comments to no more than five (5) minutes, as this section of the Agenda is limited to thirty minutes. The Arts and Culture Advisory Board will not be able to take any official action under “Comments from the Public” section.
Any person who wishes to comment on any subject on this Agenda may be heard at this time. Please sign the sign-up sheet in order to speak. Please limit your comments to no more than five (5) minutes, as this section of the Agenda is limited to thirty minutes. The Arts and Culture Advisory Board will not be able to take any official action under “Comments from the Public” section.
No comments
5.
NEW BUSINESS
a.
New Member Welcome
The board welcomed Victoria Bush to the Arts and Culture Advisory Board.
b.
Board Vacancy
Special Projects Coordinator, Audria Moore, let the board know that Ginetta Bernard has resigned. The board reviewed the only application received for the vacancy and it was for Jessica Kadie Barclay.
Motion by Ipyana Abayomi, seconded by Vice-Chair Doretha Hair Truesdell to accept the application for Jessica Kadie Barclay.
- AYE:
- Ipyana Abayomi, Victoria Bush, Chair Lisa Kessler, Vice-Chair Doretha Hair Truesdell
c.
Zora Festival Sponsorship Request
Ms. Moore presented the board with the request for sponsorship for the Zora Festival. The board discussed it and determined they would be comfortable sponsoring $15,000 for the event as it is important to the city culture.
Motion by Vice-Chair Doretha Hair Truesdell, seconded by Ipyana Abayomi to approve $15,000 for the sponsorship request with a detailed budget submitted within 30 days after the event.
- AYE:
- Ipyana Abayomi, Victoria Bush, Chair Lisa Kessler, Vice-Chair Doretha Hair Truesdell
d.
Interlocal Agreement with the County for maintenance of Sculptures
Ms. Moore presented the agreement to the board that showed the County installed 10 sculptures on city property and 8 of them currently need repair or renovations. They have found an artist to do the repairs and renovations. The board asked Ms. Moore if this same artist would be able to repair the mosaic benches throughout the city. They would like to know what is involved with the $20,000 repair and they asked that the blind date sculpture not be repaired until it is moved.
e.
Making Arts & Culture Accessible for everyone — Jessica Kadie Barclay, Manatee Center
Jessica Kadie Barclay with the Manatee Center presented the initiative she has been promoting for Making Arts and Culture Accessible for everyone. This would help to get the city and the County on national maps for museums. The board thanked her for her efforts in this endeavor.
6.
OLD BUSINESS
a.
Field Trip Discussion
The board thanked Ms. Moore for taking them out to review the status of many of the parks and art installations throughout the city.
b.
Mosaic Grave Caps Update
Ms. Moore let the board know the Grave caps will be unveiled on Friday February 20th at 10am at Pine Grove Cemetery at the corner of Avenue L and N 10th St.
c.
Highwaymen Museum Update
The board discussed the museum and the progress that has been made for the soft opening scheduled for Friday, February 20th. They would like reusable graveyard signs to be installed at each of the Highwaymen’s graves that are buried at Pine Grove Cemetery.
Motion by Vice-Chair Doretha Hair Truesdell, seconded by Victoria Bush to fund the cost of the reusable memorial graveyard signs to be installed at each of the Highwaymen’s graves that are buried at Pine Grove Cemetery not to exceed the amount of $500.00.
- AYE:
- Ipyana Abayomi, Victoria Bush, Chair Lisa Kessler, Vice-Chair Doretha Hair Truesdell
7.
BOARD AND STAFF DISCUSSION
The board discussed the option of creating a restrictive fund to fund the repairs and restoration of public art throughout the city.
8.
ADJOURNMENT
Chairperson, Lisa Kessler adjourned the meeting at 11:28 A.M.
In accordance with the Americans with Disabilities Act and Section 286.26, Florida Statutes, persons with disabilities needing special accommodation to participate in this meeting should contact the City Clerk’s Office at (772) 467-3065 at least 48 hours prior to the meeting.