Colibri Commons

When construction is completed in summer 2025, Colibri Commons will be a 136-unit community that provides rental apartments for families and has easy access to amenities such as shopping, public transportation including access to the rail spur, and a public library. The development will rise between three to four floors with a maximum height of 44 feet, spanning 211,0990 square feet. There will be four buildings, the larger of which will wrap around a five-level, 213-car garage. Additional parking will be included for 77 bicycles and will include a community room with a kitchen, an after-school program classroom and an outdoor recreation area including picnic tables and grills.  The vision and construction of Colibri Commons is a response to the tremendous need for affordable workforce housing in Silicon Valley, one of the nation’s most expensive housing markets where many workers are being priced out.  Eight units are set-aside for households who are experiencing homelessness in San Mateo County.

Application Requirements

The Opportunity

We are seeking artists to present their ideas based on the provided locations (see attached site plans and renderings below) at Colibri Commons. We are most interested in learning about how potentials artists would fill the space with artwork that works harmoniously together, is meaningful and resonates with the members of the East Palo Alto communities. We seek ideas of potential artworks, such as sculptures, hand painted murals, or mixed media that will be durable and vandal resistant on the respective selected locations. We have provided the following renderings of potential locations below. Note: The proposal does not need to include art in each of the 6 locations rather identify where art can be incorporated in any of the 6 locations.

Who we are 

The East Palo Alto Community Alliance Neighborhood Development Organization (EPACANDO) is dedicated to creating affordable housing and promoting community and economic development in the City of East Palo Alto. For more than three decades, EPACANDO [pronounced “E.P.A. Can Do”] has worked for “progress of, by, and for” our local residents, including a necessarily strong emphasis on anti-displacement. 

MidPen Housing is one of the largest, most trusted non-profit developers, owners, and managers of high-quality affordable housing in Northern California. Since MidPen was founded in 1970, we have created more than 130 communities with over 9,000 homes for low-income families, seniors and special needs individuals throughout Northern California.

Artists interested in responding to this Request for Qualifications must submit the following information by August 30, 2024.

Schedule: 

*Please note this schedule is subject to change due to the possibility of variations with the construction timeline.

Eligibility Criteria

The Application is Compromised Of:

a)  Artist Bio – Please provide a statement speaking directly to your history and experience as an artist. Please note a connection (such as residency) you have to the project, the East Palo Alto, the County of San Mateo, or the Bay Area. 

b)  Portfolio + Artwork Cost– Please provide up to ten (10) images of your past artworks that are most similar in scope to the proposed project. Additionally, please provide the associated cost for each submitted artwork (10 in total).

c)  Statement of Interest – Please describe your interest in this project, the themes that you are interested in representing through your artwork and explaining how you are uniquely qualified for this project. (Can be combined with the artist bio as one document.)

Selection Criteria 

The Colibri Commons development team will evaluate each proposal and make a selection based on the following criteria:

• Ability to work with a client to create a design/designs within the timing of our anticipated schedule below
• Consideration will be given to art that minimizes engineering, design, waterproofing changes to the building or site
• The artist’s unique style and it’s compatibility with the site’s proposed design elements
• Flexibility and collaborative attitude
• Experience working collaboratively with design teams, community groups, and stakeholders
• EPACANDO and MidPen’s interest in the proposed themes related to the development
• Artist’s connection(s) to East Palo Alto will be taken into consideration

Budget: 

The budget for this project ranges between $25,000 to $50,000 per selected location.

Submittal: 

Responses must be submitted in PowerPoint, PDF, or Microsoft Word format through the Café Portal or emailed to Karla Martinez via email at karla.martinezflores@midpen-housing.org.

Jury Process

The selection panel will choose up to three artists to interview. After the three artists are selected, those selected will move onto Round 2 and will create a concept based on their presented work in Round 1 and a finalist will be chosen.    

For questions regarding the housing development site and the Request for Qualifications, please contact Karla Martinez: (650) 730-3890.