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5 <br /> 1 NOW, THEREFORE, the Board of County Commissioners of Orange County, North Carolina <br /> 2 does hereby proclaim October 2022 as Arts and Humanities Month in Orange County and calls <br /> 3 upon community members to celebrate and promote the arts and humanities throughout the <br /> 4 region, state and nation, and to participate in sustaining the vibrancy of the arts and humanities <br /> 5 for the betterment of society. <br /> 6 <br /> 7 This the 18th day of October, 2022. <br /> 8 <br /> 9 <br /> 10 Renee Price, Chair <br /> 11 Orange County Board of <br /> 12 Commissioners <br /> 13 <br /> 14 A motion was made by Commissioner Bedford, seconded by Commissioner Hamilton, to <br /> 15 approve and authorize the Chair to sign the proclamation recognizing October 2022 as Arts and <br /> 16 Humanities Month in Orange County. <br /> 17 <br /> 18 VOTE: UNANIMOUS <br /> 19 <br /> 20 Katie Murray,Arts Commission Director, thanked the Commissioners for the proclamation. <br /> 21 <br /> 22 c. Orange County Arts Commission One Year Update on Eno Arts Mill <br /> 23 The Board received an update on the Eno Arts Mill project on its one-year anniversary. <br /> 24 <br /> 25 BACKGROUND: The Orange County Arts Commission (OCAC) opened eleven (11) artist <br /> 26 studios occupying 3,000 square feet at the Eno River Mill in March 2020. In May 2021, the OCAC <br /> 27 was granted permission to lease an additional 7,000 square feet of space adjacent to the existing <br /> 28 studios. The combined spaces, referred to as the "Eno Arts Mill," occupy 10,000 square feet of <br /> 29 space, including a gallery, classroom, seventeen (17) artist studios, a conference room, and the <br /> 30 OCAC offices. The grand opening of the Eno Arts Mill was October 1, 2021. Three hundred <br /> 31 residents attended and enjoyed an "Artist Preview" exhibit of all studio artists as well as open <br /> 32 artist studios, live music, food trucks and more. <br /> 33 <br /> 34 In the last year, the Eno Arts Mill has already become staple of the Hillsborough community and <br /> 35 Triangle arts community. Through the payment of artists and by drawing visitors to Hillsborough, <br /> 36 the space has made a significant contribution to the local economy, as demonstrated in the chart <br /> 37 below. It has also provided a welcoming and safe place for all types of people to experience the <br /> 38 arts. Several highlights of the first year of programming include: <br /> 39 • April 2022: Home? An Artistic Exploration of Affordable Housing in the Triangle. <br /> 40 This Triangle-wide exhibit was a partnership with the Housing Department and featured <br /> 41 100 works of art by 54 artists, as well as 16 poets who read their selected works during <br /> 42 the exhibit opening. In addition to works focusing on the unaffordable housing market, <br /> 43 many works focused on the COVID-19 pandemic. This powerful show received Triangle- <br /> 44 wide press and introduced many new artists and patrons to the Eno Arts Mill. <br /> 45 July 2022: Building Bridges: An Exhibit of Latin-American Artists in the Triangle. This <br /> 46 Triangle-wide exhibit featured nineteen Latin-American artists. The opening event <br /> 47 featured Grammy-nominated musician Joe Troop with Larry Bellorin as well as Takiri <br /> 48 Mexican dancers. <br /> 49 Diversity and accessibility: The OCAC believes the studio artists, staff, and leadership <br /> 50 need to reflect the community in order to be a welcoming space for all people. Growing a <br /> 51 diverse group of artist-tenants has been a priority of OCAC, with diversity not only being <br />