RON DAVIS -- Through My Eyes

I’m probably the last guy who should be writing about the Huntington

Beach Art Center. After all, what reasonable person should give an ounce

of consideration to anyone who doesn’t know the difference between a

Picasso and a pistachio. Although, I think one of them was nuts.

At a recent City Council meeting, the city supposedly “forgave” a debt

owed by the Art Center to the city of about $700,000. Can’t you just hear

the candidates for City Council reminding the taxpayers that the Art

Center is the Titanic of government spending, steaming toward the iceberg

of disaster in a sea of red ink.

The forgiveness of the Art Center debt, just like an iceberg, presents

only part of the story. In my mind, focusing only on this “forgiveness”

of debt presents a distorted picture of the Art Center, the likes of

which would make Salvador Dali proud.

A total of $522,000 of this forgiven amount represents an alleged

accumulation of debt over a period of about five years or so. Another

$196,000 represents improvements to the Art Center building. With regard

to the $196,000, this sum wasn’t incurred by the Art Center, but by the

city when they rehabilitated the building. Difficulties with the

architect and the drawings weren’t the fault of the center, but the fault

of the city.

In fact, the Art Center Foundation, a separate nonprofit organization

that contributes to the Art Center, contributed almost $600,000 in

private money toward the renovation of the building. And get this --

despite this significant contribution, the city, we the taxpayers, still

own the building.

In addition, this same foundation has contributed roughly $500,000 to

the operating cost of the center.

So the real headline should be that the Art Center Foundation has made

a contribution of more than $1 million to a city activity available to

all of the residents.

With regard to the $522,000 in alleged operating losses over the past

five years, there are some real questions as to whether this is a real

number. By “forgiving” this potentially inflated amount, the city saves

itself from a public fight with the Art Center Foundation about how the

amount was calculated.

Even if the amount was accurate, we need to look at the Art Center

with the same eyes we look at other programs in the city, programs such

as senior programs and youth sports programs, that, just like the Art

Center, don’t fully pay for themselves.

It is unfortunate for the community that many recall one of the

earlier exhibits that apparently featured human excrement in a pail. What

isn’t trumpeted loudly enough is that some time later, the excrement hit

the fan, and the Art Center Foundation insisted on changes that brought

more community-based art to the center, and flushed the more

controversial stuff.

In fact, there’s presently a wonderful exhibit featuring art by

children in our community that everyone should enjoy. And, to make

matters better, admission is free.

It is unfortunate that before City Administrator Ray Silver assumed

that position, the prior administration felt it necessary to engage in

the creative accounting that further distorted the financial picture of

the Art Center.

While I have no illusions of being capable of appreciating art, it

seems to me that painting the City Council, the current city

administrator, the Art Center Foundation or the Art Center as being

reckless with taxpayers’ money is an improper framing. This is one of

those cases where if you paint by all of the numbers, rather than just a

few, you’re liable to get a much better picture. * RON DAVIS is a private

attorney who lives in Huntington Beach. He can be reached by e-mail at

o7 [email protected]