AGENDA REPORT
Meeting Date: August 11, 2026
Item Number:
To: Honorable Mayor & City Council
From: Brandy Scott, Arts and Culture Program Associate
Subject: REQUEST FOR THE DISSOLUTION OF THE FINE ART OBLIGATION COVENANT FOR THE PROPERTY LOCATED AT 8942 WILSHIRE
BOULEVARD
Attachments: 1. Beverly Hills Municipal Code Article 8. 3-1-809
2. Image of Untitled/Columbia Prime Matter by Eric Orr
3. Fine Art Covenant for 8942 Wilshire Boulevard
RECOMMENDATION
Staff recommends the City Council accept the in-lieu fee, assessed at $283,000, to facilitate the property owner’s request to remove the installation, and approve the termination or dissolution of the Fine Art Covenant (Attachment 3) recorded against 8942 Wilshire Boulevard in the form approved by the City Attorney.
INTRODUCTION
The owner of the property located at 8942 Wilshire Boulevard fulfilled their Fine Art Obligation in 1991 by installing the sculpture Untitled/Columbia Prime Matter by Eric Orr (Attachment 2) in the courtyard of the building’s entry. The installation is comprised of three parts: a 9’ black granite pyramid with an electrum capstone, sixteen vertical copper wafers and ten vertical onyx stone wafers. The wafers are free standing and flank the pyramid on the north and west sides at a distance of approximately 20’. Originally, water flowed from the capstone down the sides of the pyramid into a river rock base. The water feature has been disabled since 2015 due to the drought in Southern California, however, the owner has confirmed that the fountain is functional. A covenant between the City and the building owner was signed in 2016.
Meeting Date: August 11, 2026
DISCUSSION
The building owner contacted staff with an offer to donate the sculpture to the City in late 2025. Staff shared the process of submitting donation proposals with the owner and requested a notarized letter of intent acknowledging the endowment requirement that would accompany any accepted donation and a current appraisal, both of which were provided.
This donation proposal was presented to the Arts and Culture Commission Developer Owned Art/Fine Art Obligation Subcommittee on Tuesday, March 3, 2026. The Subcommittee recommended declining the donation due in part to the potential difficulty in finding a suitable site for a functional fountain as well as an installation of this size. The item was then presented to the full Arts and Culture Commission during their May 12, 2026, Regular meeting with the Commission echoing the Subcommittee’s decision to deny the donation and request an in-lieu payment.
The Beverly Hills Municipal Code (Attachment 1) states that a building owner seeking to remove a Fine Art Obligation installation must pay an in-lieu fee equal to the current appraised value of the sculpture ($46,000 - $82,000) or the valuation at the time of installation ($283,000), whichever is greater. The tenant made a payment of $283,000 on July 16, 2026, and the funds were deposited into the Fine Art Fund.
Now that the property owner has made their required in-lieu payment, it is incumbent upon the City to issue the dissolution of the Fine Art Obligation covenant recorded on the property located at 8942 Wilshire Boulevard. Once the covenant has been dissolved, the property owner is free to do whatever they please with the piece, including removal and demolition.
FISCAL IMPACT
This represents an in-lieu payment of $283,000 to the Fine Art Fund, which is a restricted fund and can only be used for acquisition, maintenance, and promotion of the City’s Fine Art Collection.
Stephanie Harris,
Assistant City Manager
Approved By
ATTACHMENT 1
CITY OF BEVERLY HILLS MUNICIPAL CODE
3-1-809: OWNERSHIP, MAINTENANCE, AND INSURANCE BY THE PROPERTY OWNER:
The property owner:
A. Shall, except if the fine art is placed on city owned property, own such fine art, and if the building is sold, shall transfer ownership of the fine art as an integral part of the sale of the building.
B. Shall execute a recordable covenant running with the land, in a form acceptable to the city attorney, regarding the fine art.
C. Shall maintain such fine art at the on site location as approved by the fine art commission, unless a different on site location is approved by the fine art commission at the request of the property owner.
D. Shall maintain artwork per the guidelines set forth by the artist who created it, or the artist's representative, if applicable.
E. May request the ability to remove the fine art at a later date by offering to donate the piece to the city or by paying the original or present day value of the art, whichever is higher ("removed original art value"). In the event that the previously approved fine art (1) is a structural element of the building; (2) cannot be donated to the city; and (3) its removal cannot reasonably be avoided due to construction, reconstruction or an addition to the building, then the property owner may request to apply the removed original art value to the purchase of new fine art to meet the new fine art obligation. As a condition of the approval of the request to remove the original fine art, the property owner must indemnify the city on a form approved by the city attorney against any claim, liability or financial loss that arises from the removal of the original fine art including, without limitation violations of the Visual Arts Rights Act (VARA) and the California Art Preservation Act (CAPA). Such removal request must be reviewed by the fine art commission and approved by the city council. If the piece will be gifted to the city, the owner must provide the city with an endowment for the piece to pay for transport, storage, reinstallation, insurance and maintenance in an amount acceptable to the city council. If there is construction, reconstruction or an addition to the property in conjunction with the request to remove the original fine art, then there will be a new fine art obligation assessed in accordance with the provisions of this article.
ATTACHMENT 2
Untitled/Columbia Prime Matter by Eric Orr
Developer Owned Art Installation: 8942 Wilshire Boulevard Three-part installation:
• Granite, electrum Pyramid – 108"
• 16 copper wafers – 84"
• 10 onyx stone wafers – 72"
1991 appraisal: $283,000
2026 appraisal: $46,000-$82,000
ATTACHMENT 3