HomeMy WebLinkAboutIR 004 (4) INFORMAL REPORT TO CITY COUNCIL MEMBERS No. 23-004
To the Mayor and Members of the City Council January 24, 2023
Page 1 of 2
SUBJECT: APPOINTMENT OF 1300 GENDY TASK FORCE
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The agenda for the January 31 City Council meeting should include a resolution appointing a task force on future
uses of the City-owned building located in the Cultural District at 1300 Gendy Street. This building, currently leased
by Arts Fort Worth for use as the Fort Worth Community Arts Center and the W.E. Scott Theater, consists of
architecturally significant facilities constructed in three phases: (a)the Main Art Gallery designed by Herbert Bayer
and opened in 1954, (b)the W.E. Scott Theater and Solarium designed by Joseph R. Pelich and opened in 1966, and
(c)the Art Museum and Porte Cochere designed by O'Neil Ford Associates and opened in 1976.
The Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth, previously known as the Fort Worth Art Center and as the Fort Worth Art
Museum, occupied 1300 Gendy from 1954 until 2002, when the Modern opened its current building elsewhere in
the Cultural District at 3200 Darnell Street. On the advice of a task force known as the Committee on Reuse of the
Old Modern Museum, chaired by then-Council member Ralph McCloud, the City established the Fort Worth
Community Arts Center at 1300 Gendy and entered into a management and lease agreement with Arts Fort Worth
under which this nonprofit organization has been responsible for maintaining the building in sound condition. Arts
Fort Worth, however, has lacked sufficient resources with which to fulfill this responsibility and various components
of the building have consequently fallen into disrepair.
Relying upon a building condition assessment conducted in 2022 by the architectural firm of Bennett Partners, the
City's Property Management Department has determined that 1300 Gendy requires repairs with an aggregate cost
of approximately$26 million. In view of these repair needs and the scarcity of available resources with which to
address them, Mayor Mattie Parker has proposed that the City Council appoint a task force on future uses of 1300
Gendy. This task force would be charged with responsibility to perform the following tasks:
(a) Review the 2022 building condition assessment,
(b) Assess existing and potential uses of the building,
(c) Assess potential funding sources for necessary
repairs, renovations, and ongoing maintenance,
(d) Conduct one or more public hearings and otherwise
receive public comments, - '
(e) Recommend future uses of the building,
(f) Recommend funding sources for necessary repairs,
renovations, and ongoing maintenance, and
(g) Present a final report to the City Council no later
than the work session to be held on May 2, 2023.
The 1300 Gendy Task Force would consist of fifteen citizens as follows:
1. Councilmember Leonard Firestone (chair)
2. Dr.John Barnett, Fort Worth African American Museum and Cultural Center
3. Lillie Biggins, retired healthcare executive
4. Johnny Campbell, City Center Management Group
5. William Giron, Artes de la Rosa
6. Matt Homan, Multipurpose Arena Fort Worth
7. Wally Jones, Casa Manana
8. Glenn Lewis, Linebarger Goggan Blair
ISSUED BY THE CITY MANAGER FORT WORTH, TEXAS
INFORMAL REPORT TO CITY COUNCIL MEMBERS No. 23-004
To the Mayor and Members of the City Council January 24, 2023
Page 2 of 2
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SUBJECT: APPOINTMENT OF 1300 GENDY TASK FORCE
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9. Estela Martinez-Stuart, Visit Fort Worth
10. Patrick Newman, Fort Worth Botanic Garden
11. Pat Riley, National Cowgirl Museum
12. Dawn Taft, artist
13. Scott Wilcox,Amon Carter Museum of American Art and Cultural District Alliance
14. Ann Zadeh, Community Design Fort Worth
15. Representative of Fort Worth Zoological Association
The 1300 Gendy Task Force would receive staff support from the following departments:
(a) City Manager's Office,
(b) Communications and Public Engagement Department,
(c) Development Services Department,
(d) Law Department,
(e) Planning and Data Analytics Department,
(f) Property Management Department, and
(g) Public Events Department.
For more information about the proposed 1300 Gendy Task Force, please contact Assistant City Manager Fernando
Costa at 817-392-6122 or fernando.costa@fortworthtexas.gov.
David Cooke
City Manager
ISSUED BY THE CITY MANAGER FORT WORTH, TEXAS