Attachment A - 2.11.2026 EDA Minutes.pdf

Phoenix City Council 
Economic Development and the Arts (EDA) Subcommittee 
Summary Minutes 
Monday, February 11, 2023 
 Subcommittee Members Absent    
City Council Chambers 
200 W. Jefferson St. 
Phoenix, Ariz. 
Subcommittee Members Present     
Councilwoman Ann O’Brien, Chair       
Councilwoman Debra Stark 
Councilman Kevin Robinson 
Councilwoman Laura Pastor 
CALL TO ORDER 
Chairwoman O’Brien called the Economic Development and the Arts Subcommittee 
(EDA) to order at 10:01 a.m. with Councilwoman Debra Stark and Councilman Kevin 
Robinson present. Councilwoman Pastor attended virtually. 
CALL TO THE PUBLIC 
MINUTES OF MEETINGS 
1. Minutes of the Economic Development and the Arts Subcommittee Meeting
Councilwoman Stark made a motion to approve the minutes of the January 26, 2026,
Economic Development and the Arts Subcommittee meeting. Councilman Robinson
seconded the motion which passed unanimously, 4-0.
INFORMATION AND DISCUSSION 
2. Artist to Work Grant Programs
Interim Arts and Culture Director Carrie Brown and Grants and Community Engagement 
Program Manager Sarah Leon presented on the item. 
Deputy City Manager Frank McCune introduced the Artist to Work Grants Program. The 
program supported the creation and presentation of original, new, and progress artistic 
work in the City. He continued to introduce Interim Arts and Culture Director Carrie 
Brown to continue the presentation. 
Councilman Robinson noted about the $10,000 in support per artist and questioned how 
artists could sustain their livelihoods with that amount. He asked whether artists 
supplemented income through other engagements, and work beyond the City’s grants. 
Ms. Brown noted artists generally sought funding from multiple sources and the City 
was one of the sources.  
Attachment A

Ms. Leon added that the City awards funds only to artists producing original work. 
Additionally, she added that many artists also worked for major arts and culture 
institutions, while creating art independently or running small volunteer-led 
organizations. 
 
Councilman Robinson thanked Ms. Leon for her explanation and stated he wished the 
City would invest more in the arts because of artists strong economic impact. He noted 
visitors typically spend additional money when attending arts events, contributing to the 
local economy.  
 
Councilwoman Stark asked staff how the City promoted its arts grant programs and 
what methods or partnerships are used to ensure artists are aware of available 
opportunities. 
 
Ms. Leon shared information about outreach methods and during the pandemic they 
learned very quickly how to promote effectively and to build trust and relationships with 
artists and the arts community. She added Arts and Culture staff partnered with 
community groups, used bilingual outreach, and relied on an accessible grant platform 
to spread the word. Ms. Leon stated they were confident their approach reaches a wide 
range of artists and offered to share more details with Council Offices. 
 
Councilwoman Stark said she was eager to help promote the City’s Arts Programs and 
shared her District would soon begin an art project in Cave Creek Park. She 
emphasized the importance of selecting artists with a connection to the park or 
surrounding community, noting public art created local pride and identity. She thanked 
staff for the presentation and reiterated her interest in helping spread the word. 
 
Councilwoman Pastor thanked staff for the presentation and expressed appreciation for 
how the department responded during the 2020 pandemic, particularly in quickly 
distributing funds to artists and building trust. She encouraged staff to continue their 
work and explore new ways to support the arts community. 
 
Chairwoman O’Brien asked for clarification on whether the location requirement applied 
to both the grant recipient and paid collaborators. 
 
Ms. Leon clarified the slide showed the locations of the collaborators participating in the 
projects, not the grant recipient. 
 
Councilwoman O’Brien thanked staff for their work and for improving outreach to local 
artists. She expressed strong support for the program, encouraged staff to continue 
partnering with Council Offices to expand outreach. 
 
3. Phoenix Economic Overview and Update 
Community and Economic Development (CED) Director Ryan Touhill presented on the 
item.

Mr. Touhill thanked the Council and recognized his predecessor and the CED team for 
strengthening Phoenix’s economic position. He noted the meeting marked the start of a 
six-part series on the Phoenix economy, focusing on diversification, resilience, and 
long-term competitiveness. 
 
Councilwoman Stark thanked Mr. Touhill for the information and shared about the 
importance of considering housing supply and affordability in future discussions. She 
noted recent projects in her District and emphasized the need for housing to 
complement new development. She encouraged staff to ensure middle-income housing 
and other affordable options in the City’s economic strategy so Phoenix could support 
both high and lower wage workers. 
 
Councilman Robinson asked why life sciences degrees were growing so quickly. He 
wondered whether the growth was driven solely by the bioscience campus and projects 
in North Phoenix or whether other sub‑industries were contributing to the trend.  
 
Mr. Touhill explained the rapid growth in life sciences degrees was driven by targeted 
university investments and the expansion of local medical and bioscience programs. He 
shared an example of an University of Arizona student who launched a health-care 
startup at the Phoenix Bioscience Core and lived nearby, illustrating how local programs 
supported both education and entrepreneurship. 
 
Councilman Robinson inquired what key factors led Phoenix to move from one of the 
nation’s weakest economies in 2009 to one of the strongest by 2025.  
 
Mr. Touhill explained Phoenix’s improvement from one of the weakest to one of the 
strongest economies was not the result of a single factor. Instead, it reflected years of 
strategic decisions, including targeting future-focused industries such as advanced 
manufacturing, bioscience, and aerospace.  
 
Councilman Robinson followed up by asking what the term “18-hour economy” meant 
and then asked if this implied that from midnight to about 6 a.m. not much activity was 
occurring in the downtown Phoenix area. 
 
Mr. Touhill explained the “18-hour economy” term referred to the shift away from the 
traditional model in which downtowns functioned only during typical work hours, from 8 
a.m. to 5 p.m. and everyone would leave and go home to the suburbs. Now, people 
might stay downtown because they lived here or be drawn in to visit a new restaurants 
or cultural events. He emphasized the term was used to convey that the City had 
evolved from being solely an employment center to being a lifestyle center as well. 
 
Councilwoman Pastor thanked staff for the presentation and noted that the progress 
shown had been built on decades of work by many previous Mayors and Councils, she 
noted that the vision of a downtown where people could work and play was finally 
becoming reality. Councilwoman Pastor expressed excitement about the City’s growth 
and optimism for what could still be accomplished in the future.

CALL TO THE PUBLIC  
 
FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS 
Chairwoman O’Brien asked for more information on education partnerships and 
apprenticeship programs had been developed to ensure Phoenix residents and nearby 
communities could benefit from ongoing strategic investments. She highlighted the 
importance of preparing local talent to participate in the City’s economic growth. 
 
Councilwoman Pastor requested an update on Roosevelt Road and First Friday’s 
activity.  
 
ADJOURNMENT 
Chairwoman O’Brien adjourned the meeting at 11:20 a.m. 
 
Respectfully submitted, 
 
Dayana Rosas 
Management Fellow