'Cat Walk' Public Art Project Approved

A "Cat Walk" public art display project for downtown Los Gatos has been approved by the Council and will consist of gatos sculptures placed along Santa Cruz Avenue to celebrate the town's namesake.

The project was created by the Los Gatos Arts and Cultural Commission. On Sept. 17, the Council unanimously approved its Arts Plan, which recommended the public art installation project along with others.

According to Los Gatos Town Manager Greg Larson the gatos will be similar to the koala sculptures located in San Jose trees, which will serve as a model for the project. Funding for the program will come from grants, private donations and assistance from service clubs.

Artists will be asked to create between four and 12 designs of cats, which will be crafted of lightweight and durable materials that would be both weather and vandal proof with a lifespan of not less than 10 years. The size of the cats would be between 10 and 24 inches and would not exceed 10 pounds, according to a staff report prepared by Larson.

Town staff is recommending a one-year pilot program for the gatos, but a sub-committee of the Arts and Cultural Commission is suggesting the cats remain in the downtown trees for 10 years, with an assessment of their condition, cost issues and effectiveness of the display after one year.

The cats would be placed in the nooks, rather than the branches of designated public trees lining No. Santa Cruz Avenue between Main Street and Bachman Avenue. As part of the selection process, the Los Gatos Parks and Public Works Department would work with the artists selected by the sub-committee to identify the best installation practices and locations for each cat, according to the report.

The artists would be responsible for designing brackets to affix the artwork to the trees, subject for the PPW's approval.

The Commission will be in charge of selecting the artists and cover installation and maintenance costs of the program, which probably won't begin until late spring next year. It also hopes to expand the cat sculptures to shops that wish to participate and other public locations such as flower boxes and lamp poles, the report said.