The City of Yelm’s Arts Commission reached the required 1,000 signatures on July 20 to begin the process of reviewing the surveys to determine Yelm residents’ thoughts on a creative district.
The arts commission includes Steve Craig, Chair of Yelm’s Arts Commission, Mayra Pena, Heidi Haslinger-Corl, Steve Harshfield and Stephanie Hagelgans, according to the City of Yelm website. The creative district would provide a space in the community where residents can enjoy different activities like art, live entertainment and other opportunities and events.
Craig and Haslinger-Corl said the process of obtaining the signatures was a challenging process.
“It was difficult getting the moment of community outreach going, but now we have it. It was shared around online and on Facebook and just kept on rolling,” Haslinger-Corl said. “Getting community outreach done has been the most difficult gauntlet, and that’s why we’re celebrating reaching our goal.”
After officially reaching the 1,000 survey signatures mark, Haslinger-Corl said the arts commission can now begin to process information from the surveys, as well as move forward with the rest of the application process.
Craig added that it will be important for the commission to obtain letters of support from a diverse segment of the Yelm community and surrounding areas during the processing period. These letters can come from residents, business owners or other organization representatives.
“We’ll finish processing the surveys this fall, and hopefully we’ll be an approved creative district by the new year,” Haslinger-Corl said. “It’s going to take a bit of time. There’s a lot of requirements, and we have to get businesses on board.”
Haslinger-Corl added that the creative district will have an established geographical area in the downtown area, which will serve as the physical boundaries of the creative district. She said the commission would incorporate different arts and cultural events within that boundary and would include the Yelm City Park area and capital investment projects.
She said the capital investment projects could include investing in an arts market or a water fountain at a trailhead, as well as many more possibilities.
Craig praised the work of Line Roy, Yelm Communications and Recreation director, for leading the effort to establish a creative district in Yelm. Craig said Roy has received over 1,000 community surveys necessary to meet the state survey requirement for certification. The surveys will be essential in learning what community members in Yelm desire relative to the role of the arts in Yelm.
Craig also praised Yelm Arts Commission member Heidi Haslinger, who became the “arts rabbit” during the survey process.
“Her efforts in dressing as the ‘arts rabbit’ and attending various events to promote the survey helped draw attention to the survey in a very creative way,” Craig said.
Design N Signs owners Jon and Monique Fisher created and donated the thermometer sign to measure the growth of the survey progress throughout the signature process. Craig said their assistance brought focus on the effort and is greatly appreciated.
“Being a small business, we’re here to help,” Fisher said. “If we can create something that contributes, then we’re more than happy to participate in local causes.”
“It’s all about helping other cities too, not just Yelm,” Monique Fisher added. “It’s about helping small communities. As a small business, we just like getting our name out there and letting community members know that we’re here to help out.”
Monique Fisher said that after the COVID-19 isolation, “it’s time for a renaissance.”
