The Public Art Committee is made up of 13 members, consisting of one member from each of the five member cities, one member from the San Diego Port Tenants Association, four at-large members and 3 Board Commissioners. The Committee's task is to review and recommend which projects fit within the mission of the Port's Public Art Program and which projects will best achieve the project's own objective.

BPC Policy No. 609 - Port Public Art Program (1.41 MB)

Public Art Committee Application Form

• Committee Members
• Staff Contact
• Public Art Committee Meeting Agendas, Minutes and Actions

Committee Members:

Michael Bixler

Michael Bixler was appointed to the Board of Port Commissioners in June 2002 to represent the City of Imperial Beach. Commissioner Bixler is a vice president of Merrill Lynch Private Client Group. Active in civic service, he served as Mayor of Imperial Beach from 1990 to 1998. During this time, he was also Chairman of the San Diego Association of Governments and President of the California Council of Governments. A naval aviator, he earned his Masters of Science degree at the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, California, and is a graduate of UC Berkeley.

Lee Burdick

Lee Burdick was appointed to the Board of Port Commissioners in June 2009 to join Chair Stephen P. Cushman and Commissioner Scott Peters in representing the City of San Diego. Commissioner Burdick is a partner with the San Diego law firm Higgs, Fletcher & Mack. She has extensive experience in government affairs, regulatory compliance and land use planning and has represented businesses in a variety of regulated industries. Prior to joining Higgs, Fletcher & Mack, Ms. Burdick served as director of government affairs and general counsel for Jimsair Aviation Services.  She was also a principal in the law firm of Ferris & Britton, A.P.C. in San Diego and was the owner of Prima Legal Services in Redwood City, California. Her civic responsibilities have included serving on the board of directors for the San Diego Regional Chamber of Commerce, chair of the Chamber of Commerce Working Group on the City of San Diego General Plan Update, chair of the Chamber of Commerce Legal Committee and chair of the Chamber of Commerce Legislative Committee.  She is a past member of the National Aviation Transportation Association Airports Committee, the board of directors and chair of Program Committee for the Forum for Women Entrepreneurs and is a current member of the working group on the County of San Diego's General Plan Update.

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Courtney Ann Coyle

Courtney Ann Coyle is an attorney in private practice who specializes in environmental litigation, land use policy and planning consulting for various tribes, citizen groups, local and national conservation and historic preservation organizations and non-profits. Her primary focus is biological, historical, archaeological and cultural resource landscape protection. She has specifically made an impact on the development and adoption of cultural resource laws and policies and planning at the local and state levels. Coyle has been recognized with various awards including California Environmental Attorney of the Year. Along with her past service on the San Diego Opera Advisory Board, Lux Art Institute Advisory Board and Patrons of the Prado Board, Coyle is currently a board member of the Trust for Public Land, San Diego Women's Foundation and Save Our Heritage Organization. She is also past President of the La Jolla Town Council and past Vice President of the Torrey Pines Association. She has a B.A. in Biology from Washington & Lee University and a J.D. from the University of San Diego and is a LEAD San Diego graduate. Coyle has served as a member of the City of San Diego Commission for Arts and Culture since October 2002 and is Co-Chair of the Commission’s Policy Committee as well as a member of the Commission’s Advocacy Advisory and Executive Committees. Coyle serves annually on the Commission’s Organizational Support Program panels to advise on the allocation of Transient Occupancy Tax funds to more than 80 arts and culture organizations in San Diego. Coyle is an avid art collector and contributed to the Commission’s 2004 campaign to adopt the City’s Public Art Master Plan along with new public art legislation which was unanimously approved by the Mayor and City Council.

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Lynda Forsha

Lynda Forsha is an independent curator and art advisor who works with private collectors and corporate clients, advising them on art acquisitions, with a special focus on commissioning new works.  From 2002 through 2005 Forsha served as the Public Art Program Administrator for the City of San Diego Commission for Arts and Culture’s Public Art Program.  Among other achievements, she was responsible for overseeing the planning and implementation of the Public Art Master Plan which was unanimously approved by San Diego’s Mayor and City Council in April 2004. Prior to her work at the Commission, Ms. Forsha was a curator at the Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego (1979-1993) and served as head of the museum’s curatorial department from 1988-1993. During her tenure at MCASD, she originated over thirty major exhibitions and commissioned numerous temporary and permanent works of art.  In 1993, she was appointed Director of inSITE94, a collaborative project of 38 nonprofit institutions that commissioned 78 temporary installations and site-specific works throughout the San Diego/Tijuana region.  In addition, she has worked as a consultant on a variety of projects for museums and other cultural institutions  Ms. Forsha received her BA in art history from the University of California, Santa Barbara in 1979.

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Terry B. Hall

Terry B. Hall, CPM, joined the Public Art Committee in March 2008, as a representative of the Port Tenants Association. Currently with Terramar Retail Centers as General Manager and Leasing Agent for Seaport Village, she has also specialized in retail management and leasing with the Burnham companies and Clarion ING (General Manager of Del Mar Plaza). While at Del Mar, Ms. Hall collaborated with artists to display art sculptures throughout the Plaza and negotiated favorable lease opportunities for the local Del Mar Art Center. She is currently involved in the prospective rehabilitation and renovation of the Old Police Headquarters project. Ms. Hall received her Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Southern California, has her CPM (Certified Property Manager) designation from the Institute of Real Estate Management, is a member of ICSC (International Council of Shopping Centers), is on the Urban Design Committee of the Downtown San Diego Partnership, as well as the Shuttle Task Force, and is a legacy member of CREW (Commercial Real Estate Women.) Ms. Hall looks forward to helping San Diego continue its legacy as “America’s Finest City” through continuing and growing the local art scene as a member of the Port’s Public Art Committee.

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Eugene Kocherga

Eugene Kocherga joined the San Diego Unified Port’s Public Art Committee in October of 2008 as the representative for the City of Imperial Beach.  A graduate of UCSD, Mr. Kocherga is a realtor and developer in residential and commercial projects on both sides of the border.  He has been involved in architectural design and land planning for over two decades and brings with him a multi-cultural background in art.  Born in Mexico and raised in Spain, Portugal, Costa Rica, Sweden, South Africa and Scotland, Mr Kocherga moved to San Diego in the late 70’s and has since developed an intimate appreciation and knowledge of Southern and Baja California. He is active in community organizations and currently sits on the regional YMCA board, is an active Rotarian in Coronado, and is involved in the Leukemia & Lymphoma’s fundraising efforts where his wife is a board member.

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Mary K. Lyman

Mary K. Lyman was appointed to the Public Art Committee as an at-large member in July of 2009.  For more than twenty years, Ms. Lyman has been deeply involved with the arts as a trustee, arts advisor, and museum administrator.  Her focus has always been to make the very best in visual and performing arts accessible and available to a wide and diverse public. She has been on the board of the Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego since 1997, and served as Chair of the MCASD Finance Committee (1999-2003 and 2007-08) and Secretary of the Board (1998 and 2005).  For the City of San Diego Commission for Arts and Culture, she served on funding panels for large-budget organizations (1999-2002).  Ms. Lyman is also currently on the board of the La Jolla Playhouse (2008-present), and previously served on the board of The Joffrey Ballet (1997-2007) and as Executive Committee member from 1993-1999.  She also served as a Trustee of The National Symphony Orchestra (1989-2000).  She has sat on the advisory board of The University of Iowa Museum of Art since 1986, and chaired the University’s Public Art Committee from 1990-92.  From 1990 to 2007, she was a member of UI Art in State Buildings Committee. She also served on the UI Hospitals & Clinics’ Public Art Committee from 1989-2008.  At The University of Iowa Museum of Art, she served as Interim Director from 1991-92, and Acting Co-Director from 1990-91.  In those roles, she was involved in all aspects of museum operation and exhibition planning, fundraising, budget oversight, and collection management.  Ms. Lyman received her B.A. from The University of Iowa.  From 1973-1980, she lived in Paris and London, where she studied art; and from 1984 until recently, she divided her time between Iowa City, Iowa and La Jolla, California.  She currently lives in La Jolla.

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Susan Ronan

Susan Ronan was appointed to the Port of San Diego Public Art Committee in October 2008, representing the City of Coronado. She holds a Baccalaureate degree in Interior Design from Southern Illinois University, with an emphasis in residential design and Art History. She worked and taught at the college level in her field for over 23 years. In 1996 Ms. Ronan decided to change careers to pursue her artistic design interests as a Studio Goldsmith. She currently works as a studio artist at the Spanish Village Art Center (SVAC) in Balboa Park, San Diego where she produces and markets her work. Ms. Ronan has been a member of the SVAC Board of Directors’ for eight years, and she continues to serve as the Chair of the Jury Committee chartered to judge and critique the work, in multiple media, submitted by artists applying for new membership in the SVAC.  In addition, she is also a current and active member in several local and national art organizations. Ms. Ronan enjoys a large network of professional artists, many of whom have been commissioned by the Cities of San Diego and Coronado as well as other communities, to design and install public art projects.

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Dency Souval

Dency Souval is a fine arts artist, consultant and teacher with thirty years experience in the San Diego County area, representing the city of Chula Vista. Her professional focus has spanned all the expressive arts including dancing, painting, music and sculpture. With the Chula Vista Elementary School District, Ms. Souval taught creative arts for twenty-seven years, developed and implemented curricula for grades K-6, classes for the Gifted and Artistically Talented Education (GATE) program students, and taught summer school for challenged students. She also developed the ART SMART after-school program that was sponsored by the City of Chula Vista and developed curricula and implemented College for Kids at Southwestern College. As a volunteer, Ms. Souval participated in Chula Vista 2000 Community and City committees for bringing Chula Vista into the new century and is currently involved in Chula Vista’s A Taste of the Arts Festival and the National Arts Program. Ms. Souval is committed to sharing her passion for the arts by bringing the arts and culture to the communities of Chula Vista. She also aspires to encourage Chula Vista’s full participation in implementation of public art for the Chula Vista Bayfront and to contribute to the success of the Public Art Program in the Port District as a whole.

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Ms. Iris Lynn Strauss

Iris Lynn Strauss was appointed to the Port’s Public Art Committee in January 2009 to serve as a member-at-large. Ms. Strauss is acting as the Mayor's Liaison for Arts and Culture/Special Projects, e.g. the NEVP, the Balboa Park Centennial, and the Civic Theatre reconstruction project. She served on the Commission for Arts and Culture from 1998-2007. She is Chairman of BRAVO San Diego 2000, a gala to benefit the Business Volunteers for the Arts (BVA) Programs, which she chaired in 1999. Ms. Strauss is Chairman of the Board of San Diego Opera, President of the DOW Diva Investment Club and is actively affiliated with the Museum of Contemporary Art, San Diego and many other arts organizations, as well as the United Jewish Federation and the San Diego Center for Jewish Culture. In 1992, she was awarded the Women in Leadership award by the Country Friends; in 1996, she was honored by California Women in Government in the field of arts and media; and in 1997, the Salvation Army named her a Woman of Dedication.

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Jess Van Deventer

Jess Van Deventer is an at-large member from National City who has held the title of Commissioner Emeritus since ending his third term on the Board of Port Commissioners in 2004. Mr. Van Deventer chaired the BPC in 1996 and 2003. He currently serves on the City Council for the City of National City, a post he also held from 1977-1992, serving four times as Vice Mayor. As a member of the National City Public Art Committee since 2004, he chaired the committee in 2007. As President of Vancon Corporation, specializing in general construction and management, he has overseen the design and construction of over fifty commercial structures in the south San Diego area. Mr. Van Deventer also owns a number of commercial properties managed through his company, J & S Investments, and is a real estate consultant with JDM Properties, selling, leasing, and managing properties in the South Bay area. He is very proud of his role in bringing world class art to the San Diego region in keeping with other progressive metropolitan cities throughout the country.

Staff Contact:

• Yvonne Wise, (619) 686-6200

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Public Art Committee Meeting Agendas, Minutes and Actions

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