[{"_1":2,"_99":-5,"_100":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,75,87],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},"mediaId",6530109,"mediaKeyId","3726886-e988137a233b0db29d50e3a76d861071","parentId",3726886,"title","Committee approves May 19 meeting minutes","audioSeconds",27,"startMs",3760,"endMs",30780,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=3726886-e988137a233b0db29d50e3a76d861071&start=3&end=30","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/3726886-e988137a233b0db29d50e3a76d861071/thumbnail_3760.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6530109/Dallas/Dallas-County/Texas/Committee-approves-May-19-meeting-minutes","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6530109-53cfbce4bf3fd872fc24e8f5469f2491/orig.mp4?Expires=1770668933&Signature=JZgMNATN7WOjN9YEh~ghLZNAE7OvP-NRsHGtpaM9OtXMo1soxJ89HEu1AHp6CbHHfRqJxE2XlJOiyf5JVuavrjuCmYUyk6WwjgctnOyzSNS3Koqk6wP2eNnpcVd4anyxORuyQKOw~oKRZ~XWJoEydYKLefg0kPMVmVhSpIKA0BWIvLv5~kWe3DPzduSH5cJGTf~qY51gW5E2b0TEyGHPAwSzFlTcoxHAOhg3v4lZ3Y~6Dmrwo1GT9yoeio2O23WUtxXhPwvViOqp1iOPgBvVJsanc0zXQ~dCsPWOzCZ3dWCsVt6HfWzNr1N2uPHdycWof3WHeYYMwKdvMLbrfVhF9g__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","Dallas","date","2025-06-09T00:00:00Z","article","At 9:01 a.m. on June 9, Chair Ridley convened the Quality of Life Arts and Culture Committee and opened the meeting with a motion to approve the May 19, 2025 meeting minutes. A committee member moved the motion (mover not specified in the transcript). With no discussion reported, Chair Ridley called for the vote: “All those in favor, please say aye.” Committee members responded “Aye,” and Chair Ridley said, “Any opposed? Motion passes.”

No roll-call tally, named mover, second or recorded dissents were included in the meeting transcript. No additional motions or formal votes on ordinances, resolutions or contracts were recorded in the transcript for the June 9 meeting.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","Dallas - Quality of Life, Arts and Culture Committee - Jun 09, 2025","oneSentenceSummary","The Quality of Life Arts and Culture Committee convened on June 9 and approved the minutes from the May 19, 2025 meeting by voice vote; no mover, seconder or recorded roll-call tally was provided in the transcript.","taxTitle","Dallas, Dallas County, Texas","taxId",2781,"location","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":76,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":77,"_41":78,"_43":79,"_45":80,"_47":81,"_49":82,"_51":83,"_53":84,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":85,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":86,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6530112,"Dallas Public Library outlines Smart Summer learning program; staff say it is privately funded and serves thousands",582,1196545,1779125,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=3726886-e988137a233b0db29d50e3a76d861071&start=1196&end=1779","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/3726886-e988137a233b0db29d50e3a76d861071/thumbnail_1196545.jpg","/articles/6530112/Dallas/Dallas-County/Texas/Dallas-Public-Library-outlines-Smart-Summer-learning-program-staff-say-it-is-privately-funded-and-serves-thousands","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6530112-da02c30a60774e354110f5ed4c5f836f/orig.mp4?Expires=1770668933&Signature=SQTgspOHSWH6cBg07MHq-pVGLnALGSKA2SkITvNe8hqcB~P9YDEGPoJV-aZFqokZHfMC5s5vQGpxCs4XXbH8LV4~KOUHH1ilWvv09T9SALoEqHW8W1fsRx~Rg1EvWOJJItZv1yO4BbVEiYR9d5En-Erl9SMWyVAEuxvUcMe5nGNVGo8OLI~VA55YEbd5LeN~IdQLk7eXzaRBAwEIa4iHzrcDy7dea7H6uJPeke8mnAQIBgbdJ38jVNF0N2O6X7I4CcBhuwqmAJs~XFW1UY9vCfZkQIaj8BZnGSXvNrECl70MwAlzwcyXtehFRJddwISHqS4WdSDi2K3K4Zb86sao1w__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Heather Lowe, interim library director, and Melissa Deese, interim assistant director, briefed the Quality of Life Arts and Culture Committee on June 9 about Smart Summer, the Dallas Public Library’s annual summer learning program.

Melissa Deese said Smart Summer runs May 31 through Aug. 9 and “is completely privately funded,” noting that the Friends of the Dallas Public Library raise funds each year and that the library attracts regular corporate and nonprofit sponsors. She said the program uses the SMART acronym—science, math, art, reading and technology—and that the library shifted from a summer-reading model to a broader summer-learning model to address declines in multiple academic areas during the summer.

Deese provided participation figures from the prior year: about 9,000 children and adults registered, more than 2,000 library programs were offered, and nearly 42,000 people attended events across the library’s 30 locations. She said roughly half of branches provide free summer lunches and that last year the library served nearly 16,000 free meals to children through partners, which Deese cited as Education PV and the Texas Department of Agriculture.

The committee questioned program measurement and outreach. Committee member Blackman asked whether the library evaluates learning loss by coordinating with school districts. Deese said the library has tried but that Dallas Independent School District (DISD) privacy rules limit data sharing; she said library staff receive anecdotal feedback from teachers and that the library will continue outreach and media efforts—including an upcoming Univision segment—to raise awareness.

Committee member Gracie asked about age ranges and teen programming. Library staff said the dominant registrants were preschool and early-grade children and that teen-targeted programs exist separately from parks-run summer camps. The library said it partners with the Park and Recreation Department to host parks summer camps at 10 branches; Deese and staff listed the parks branches hosting camps as White Rock Hills, Polk Wisdom, Pleasant Grove, Grauwiler Park, Skyline, Forest Green, Dallas West, Arcadia Park, Hampton, Illinois and Prairie Creek.

Deese described program mechanics: children are asked to read 20 minutes a day for 10 days, discover 10 things and create 10 things; each set of 10 activities earns a free book, and completing 30 days/20 activities enters children in a grand-prize drawing. Adults are asked to read 30 minutes a day for 15 days with a similar reward structure. The library also ramps up adult programming at the Central Library with “Summer Saturdays” and other events designed to activate downtown.

Committee members suggested benchmarking and collecting metrics for funder reporting and outreach; committee members also requested marketing materials the library can use in constituent communications. Library staff agreed to share flyers after the meeting. The committee did not take formal action on the program during the June 9 briefing.","Library staff told the Quality of Life Arts and Culture Committee on June 9 that Smart Summer, the library’s summer learning program, runs May 31–Aug. 9, is funded by Friends of the Dallas Public Library and partners, and recorded about 9,000 registrations, nearly 42,000 program attendees and nearly 16,000 free meals last year.",{"_33":88,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":89,"_41":90,"_43":91,"_45":92,"_47":93,"_49":94,"_51":95,"_53":96,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":97,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":98,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6530116,"Dallas Aurora organizers pitch expansion of light-and-technology festival as a city signature event",668,49825,718120,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=3726886-e988137a233b0db29d50e3a76d861071&start=49&end=718","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/3726886-e988137a233b0db29d50e3a76d861071/thumbnail_49825.jpg","/articles/6530116/Dallas/Dallas-County/Texas/Dallas-Aurora-organizers-pitch-expansion-of-light-and-technology-festival-as-a-city-signature-event","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6530116-48a8a8520d54567ed7098d8cad51d1f2/orig.mp4?Expires=1770668933&Signature=V8KRZrPMpaxcCHCW0Rvg4-9xsr9sY1633hG1IIGq-RwPhmR~e3wqS1dHdXwzgEWd~QCU3JrtlgQblZwPtJiR1YKc8sMAkmhhlFe9gvl27SWQwfFCrVU83Ve~TCEconhb56azZkGAueOKdT3cMUxbi0GrnLxSk4bz-i4o8JX6XMrvU-R3x8ngLAM0FByVIT1vJy8dwMxmtUR5eEEPXW-nyW2qZZkHn2-WJkYeUFUDz2hQAELuSxFq-vbrTcS5F0wNgFQboFqDB3n~PsBs-arprUNMO25tr~ugyqSbTUPuvysHSXovrxPpnXTsEnmCha4bEzZrCt~QKpP7sx2jYtJEXw__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Martine Philippe, director of the Office of Arts and Culture, introduced Joshua King, founder of the Aurora Festival, who briefed the Quality of Life Arts and Culture Committee on June 9 about plans to grow Aurora into a Dallas signature event.

King said Aurora was founded on Nov. 19, 2010, at the Dallas Heritage Village and that its central premise is that “art should be for everybody,” meaning art staged across public spaces rather than confined to institutions. He told committee members Aurora has attracted more than 200,000 visitors to its programs over 15 years, commissioned about 413 artists from more than 70 countries on more than 200 acres of public land, and recorded what he summarized as roughly 90 million media impressions and substantial social-media engagement.

The presentation stressed both cultural and economic ambitions: King compared Aurora to Nuit Blanche (Toronto) and Vivid Sydney, noting those events’ multimillion-dollar economic impacts, and said Aurora’s board believes the festival can become a global-drawing free public event that also improves quality of life across Dallas neighborhoods.

Committee members asked how the festival would convert local programming into sustained growth. Committee member Schultz asked about specific goals and strategies to build a beloved, community-based event that then attracts tourism. King replied the organization has focused on community programming since the pandemic and is seeking longer-term financial commitments and strategic alignment with city tourism bureaus and major partners rather than purely organic growth.

Committee member Willis pressed on revenue channels and what the city currently provides. Willis said she had asked Martine Philippe about city support and was told the city provided a $25,000 line item in 2024 and that the city has in the past waived permitting fees and provided in-kind assistance such as barricades and parking meter hooding through the Office of Special Events. King and Philippe said those operational waivers help but do not replace the significant private and philanthropic resources needed to stage an event that, King said, can cost “millions of dollars to pull off.”

King described community programs Aurora runs year-round to sustain neighborhood impact, including an Art Quest scavenger-hunt program partnering with groups in Pleasant Grove, Bachman Lake and South Dallas and collaborations with organizations such as Los Primos Dallas, Jubilee Park, the African American Museum, Dallas Parks and Recreation and others. He also listed philanthropic supporters and partners, naming the McDermott Foundation, the J. Eric Johnson Fund, the Addy Foundation, the Levy Family Fund and the Tomah Foundation, and programming partners including the AT&T Performing Arts Center, the Dallas Museum of Art and Dallas Public Libraries.

King asked the committee to consider a formal city–Aurora alliance to identify funding and shared resources and to develop a national communications plan. He did not present a specific funding request at the June 9 meeting; he said he would return with more detail after consulting the committee and partners.

Committee members, including Vice Chair Rezendes, praised Aurora’s outreach to grassroots organizations in Southeast Dallas and Pleasant Grove and encouraged staff and council members to consider how to support scaling while keeping neighborhood programming intact. Several members offered to help convene partners or provide channels for coordination; no formal direction or funding commitment was taken at the meeting.

The committee’s next steps were not set during the briefing; King said he would follow up with the committee to identify how the city can form revenue channels, communications channels and a formal partnership with Aurora.

","Organizers of Dallas Aurora told the Quality of Life Arts and Culture Committee on June 9 that the 15-year light-and-technology festival has grown to hundreds of thousands of attendees and is seeking a formal city partnership, funding pathways and a national communications plan to scale into a signature international event.","actionData","errors"]

Article not found

Committee approves May 19 meeting minutes

Dallas Public Library outlines Smart Summer learning program; staff say it is privately funded and serves thousands

Dallas Aurora organizers pitch expansion of light-and-technology festival as a city signature event