Richard Nash, an artist who has worked on multiple public pieces in Oak Harbor, told the Arts Commission on Nov. 13 that parts of Windjammer Park — including the Teacher’s Tribute Garden and the founder sculpture — are in “very bad shape” and need a maintenance plan.

Nash recounted before-and-after photos showing dead madrones, plantings overrun by debris and the disappearance of the plexiglass doors from a community “leave a book, take a book” box. “It’s just absolutely horrific what’s happened to that space,” Nash said, describing the garden’s decline and urging the commission to help preserve the work donated by community members.

Nash suggested several modest fixes: moving a bench farther from the sculpture, installing small bird spikes on the tower tops, and applying a clearer, easier-to-clean coating to concrete pads to avoid persistent rust staining on Corten-steel pieces. He also urged the commission to recognize long-serving volunteers and donors who have supported public-art projects, citing private contributions and in-kind labor from local firms.

Parks staff acknowledged there is no formal, site-specific maintenance schedule for public art in Oak Harbor and said routine landscaping is handled through general park maintenance. Staff also confirmed the city maintains a small arts repair and maintenance line and proposed meeting with Nash to evaluate specific needs and potential resource requests. “We have a repair and maintenance line for $5,000 that could be utilized for those kinds of activities,” the Parks & Recreation representative said.

Commissioners asked staff to follow up, suggested adding the issue to future agendas until it is resolved, and volunteered to form a small group to inspect the site and discuss volunteer coordination. Nash offered to provide correspondence and contacts, including prior outreach about a sister-city connection in Dublin, Ireland, that he said had generated interest but lacked local follow-through.

Next steps: staff will meet with Nash to scope maintenance needs and report back; the commission will keep the maintenance item on the agenda until the condition is addressed.