Sculpture park aimed to attract visitors to the area

Some residents of Bee Cave are looking to give people another reason to enjoy or visit the area by enhancing its visual arts scene.

The Bee Cave Arts Foundation has been building momentum toward a possible Bee Cave Sculpture Park. The foundation started by Bee Cave City Councilman Chad Bockius in 2009 aims to impact the community by bringing art to residents and visitors in different ways, and Bockius believes a sculpture park would help accomplish the foundation's goal.

"From a City of Bee Cave standpoint, we spend so much time working on the infrastructure of the city, but we haven't spent much time working on the soul of the city," he said.

The Bee Cave Arts Foundation has hosted several student art shows that brought in thousands of patrons. The foundation also launched the Benches of Bee Cave program, which as of now features six unique benches placed throughout the Hill Country Galleria.

"We envision these benches bringing people to the city," he said.

Bockius said the student art shows and Benches of Bee Cave program have been part of an effort to raise awareness of the arts in the community. Bockius has developed a presentation to give to the Bee Cave Economic Development Board within the next few months on the benefits of a possible sculpture park.

The presentation points out the positive economic impact that sculpture parks have had for other locations and cites a report stating that cultural tourism is the leading reason travelers say they visit a community.

Bockius hopes the Economic Development Board will back the sculpture park and help make it happen. He said the project is too big for the Bee Cave Arts Foundation to do alone, but he would like the foundation to help and be a part of it.

On the city's side, possible funding options listed in Bockius' presentation include grants, a hotel/motel tax and beautification funds. Meanwhile, the Bee Cave Arts Foundation could pursue donations, grants and fundraising efforts, the presentation says. Bockius does not have an estimate of how much a sculpture park might cost.

For potential locations, Bockius thinks the parkland behind what used to be City Hall and is now the Bee Cave police station in the Hill Country Galleria would be ideal for the sculpture park.

"It's a beautiful setting—crystal-clear pond, tree-lined and behind the hustle and bustle of the shopping," he said. "We always thought that would be a perfect piece of land to realize our vision."

Brother Mel Meyer, a St. Louis–based artist who is responsible for several of the Benches of Bee Cave benches, said the sculpture parks in St. Louis are popular with a wide range of people.

"I think a sculpture park can be a kind of gathering place, and the fact that there are sculptures there makes it more of an interesting and educated place than it otherwise might be," he said.

Five-step plan

Bee Cave City Councilman Chad Bockius has a five-point plan he hopes will make a sculpture park a reality, which is to:

• Get participation from the city
• Select a location for the sculpture park
• Conduct a feasibility study
• Develop a plan, its timing and budget
• Determine how to fund the sculpture park