City’s Top Arts Official Resigns After 7-Year Tenure
The head of the city’s arts program is leaving her job after seven years, officials said.
Denise Nelson-Nash, the city’s executive director for the arts, has submitted her resignation, effective Friday, said planning director Alvin James.
“She mentioned she had a couple of employment offers,” he said.
Nelson-Nash, whose division was absorbed by the Planning and Permitting Department, did not return telephone calls.
As the city’s top arts official, Nelson-Nash earned $60,000 to $70,000 a year and oversaw grants to artists and public art community programs. Her top priorities included supervising the building of a proposed city monument to Pasadena sports legends Jackie and Mack Robinson.
The arts office, which has two full-time and one part-time employee, has seen its annual budget trimmed from more $500,000 to less than $300,000 in the last two years.
Nelson-Nash’s departure leaves the department with one part-time employee. Her assistant Stephanie Tanaka is on leave, officials said.
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