City weighs $25,000 for museums

While the goal is to eventually make the Campus Martius and Ohio River Museums self-sustaining entities, it will take more than $100,000 annually to keep the institutions running over the next three years, according to Jean Yost, chairman of the Friends of the Museums management committee.

And museum board members have suggested that Marietta's City Council contribute $25,000 to help get the funding ball rolling.

"To run the museums at the level previously provided by the Ohio Historical Society, we'll need $310,000 to cover our three-year budget," Yost told members of council's finance committee this week.

"We've had overwhelming support from the community, and donations currently total $45,000, with a possible additional grant of $20,000 coming," he said. "Also a county-wide membership drive will begin next week, utilizing about 10,000 area school students. And in the following weeks we'll be conducting a donor drive up and down the Ohio Valley and throughout the region."

But Yost said support from the city would go a long way toward helping obtain the initial grants and other funding required to operate the museums over the next three-year budget cycle.

On March 26 of this year, the Ohio Historical Society announced that, due to state budget constraints, a local group would have to be found to manage the Marietta museums or the facilities would be closed.

More than 40 members of the local community met on May 1 to organize a task force that conducted a total review of the museums with the goals of stabilizing finances and improving the museum experience to attract more visitors.

By Oct. 1 a business plan had been developed, and the task force became the museum management committee for Friends of the Museums. A management agreement was signed with the state historical society and the local group officially took over operation of the museum facilities.

"We have to do everything that would be required to start any new business, but also make sure we're operating according to state and historical society standards," Yost said.

Museum management committee board member Roger Hall said the goal is to make the museums self-supporting.

"I think the museums can become self-sustaining," he said. "It's not our intention to continually seek or rely on the state or council to fund us."

But board member Nancy Hollister suggested an initial investment from city council to get the museum business plan off the ground would help.

"We would like to obtain an allocation from city council, and a pledge from council members to work with us so that we may talk next year about establishing an annual funding stream for the museums," she said. "We really need to have strong public support for this plan to work."

Hollister added that a $25,000 contribution from council would be helpful as a starting point.

She also noted that the Marietta museums are establishing a cooperative agreement with the Blennerhassett Museum in Parkersburg to market both museums to regional visitors.

City finance committee chairman Andy Thompson, R-at large, noted the work that Friends of the Museum had put into keeping the facilities open for the community.

"And if these museums go away, we'll likely not get them back," he said. "We've already lost entities that were beyond our control, like the Delta Queen, and it's in our own interest to see this museum plan succeed.

Thompson said the city could afford it and he would support appropriating $25,000 from this year's budget for the museums endeavor.

But Councilman Tom Vukovic, D-4th Ward, was concerned about being able to make the same contribution in 2010.

"We may be able to do this now, but with flat income tax revenue projected, will we be able to do it again next year?" he asked.

City auditor David Locke confirmed that the city had cash in the bank now that could be put toward the museum effort, but could not guarantee what would be available a year from now.

Councilwoman Kathy Shively, D-at large, agreed that the city did not want to lose the museums which are among the top tourist draws in this area.

"But the only way I would see obtaining monies for that would be from our (hotel/motel) bed tax, which goes into our general fund," she said. "I will support the idea, but I would like to negotiate the amount we contribute. If they're coming back every year I think the amount should be less than $25,000."

Councilman Jon Grimm, R-3rd Ward, supported the $25,000 donation which he considers an investment in the city's tourism business.

And Councilman Harley Noland, D-at large, added that attracting more museum visitors to town would add hotel patrons and help increase the bed tax.

Thompson said he would recommend making the $25,000 appropriation this year, but it would be up to the new council-elect, which takes office in January, to decide whether to continue that funding on an annual basis.