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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMuseum Board MinutesMINUTES OF THE APRIL MEETING OF THE OSHKOSH PUBLIC MUSEUM BOARD (Minutes were approved at the May 6, 2010 board meeting) The regular April meeting of the Oshkosh Public Museum Board was held on Thursday, April 1, 2010 in the Lecture Room of the Museum. Board President Carol Fenrich called the meeting to order at 4:00 p.m. The roll was taken: Present: Absent: Mr. Becker Ms. Drew Mrs. Fenrich Mr. Haffeman Mrs. Kujawa Mr. Metz Mr. Rego Ms. Moldenhauer Mr. Winkler Also present: Museum Director Brad Larson, Assistant Director Michael Breza, Archivist Scott Cross, Leadership Oshkosh representative Steve Vickman, three students from Fox Valley Technical Institute and Brenda Hauber recording the minutes. There were no citizen statements. The minutes of the March 4, 2010 meeting were read. Eugene Winkler moved that the minutes be approved. Rick Rego seconded the motion. Mrs. Fenrich asked for any discussion. There being none, the roll call vote was requested: In favor: Against: Mr. Becker None Mrs. Fenrich Mrs. Kujawa Mr. Rego Mr. Winkler The vote was unanimous in favor and the motion was passed. The minutes of the March 4, 2010 board meeting were approved. The April 2010 bill listing was read. Eugene Winkler moved that the bill listing be approved for payment. Carol Kujawa seconded the motion. The discussion followed. Since the invoice for the SimplexGrinnell service (system inspection) had not yet arrived, this entry was excluded. At the conclusion, Mrs. Fenrich called for the roll call vote: In favor: Against: Mr. Becker None Mrs. Fenrich Mrs. Kujawa Mr. Rego Mr. Winkler With the vote unanimous in favor, the motion was passed. The April 2010 bill listing was approved with the exclusion of the entry for SimplexGrinnell. Mrs. Fenrich then asked Mr. Larson to present his monthly report. Mr. Larson started his report by stating that the Snapshots of History continues to attract visitors and they have positive comments about the exhibit. Jon Urben, General Services Director at City Hall, was so impressed with the exhibit, he ordered a similar set of photos for installation in the room adjacent to the Council chamber. However, attendance remains below expectations, which makes reaching our 2010 revenue goal difficult. Some visitors have commented that they have just learned about the exhibit. Mr. Larson believes this is due in part to weak marketing which is due to our small marketing budget. A rule of thumb for a museum to adequately publicize its events, the marketing budget should be about 10% of the operating budget, which for us would be $100,000. Our current marketing budget appropriation is $28,000. The summer exhibit of Sherlock Holmes and The Clocktower Mystery which opens to the public on June 2, should arrive on May 25. The members' special opening will occur on June 1. Part of the museum's responsibility for this exhibit is finding living accommodations for the actor who travels with the exhibit. Mr. Jungbacker has generously offered the use of one of his vacant apartments. It is unfurnished so we must provide the basic furnishings. Mr. Larson asked if Board Members have any item(s) that they would be willing to loan or donate for this, please contact Brenda. Dan Becker offered a queen size bed, Carol Kujawa offered towels, etc.; and Carol Fenrich offered small kitchen appliances. A number of programs and special activities to coincide with the exhibit are in the planning stage, and Megan is developing partnerships to help promote them. Some of these programs /events will occur during the evening hours. These activities in the evening will be one way for us to judge if there is interest in this. As an example of how tight our marketing budget is, only $8,000 has been allocated to advertise this exhibit. Mr. Larson then announced that Archivist Scott Cross would provide an overview of the situation in the archives relative to the large donation of blueprints from Fluor Bros. Construction Co. Mr. Larson explained that this business since 1875 and has been involved with the construction of many Oshkosh buildings. Mr. Larson introduced and asked Archivist Scott Cross to give the board a presentation on this project. Scott began by saying that over 100 sets of blueprints have been inventoried so far, and there are more yet to come. Even before this collection came in, space in the archives was severely limited and now the situation is quickly reaching the critical point. He said he is facing a severe storage shortage. Mr. Larson said that this situation serves to illustrate the shortage of collection storage and work spaces we face here. There was neither President's Report nor any Board Members' Statements. With no further business before the board, Carol Kujawa moved that the meeting adjourn. Carol Fenrich seconded the motion. Mrs. Fenrich called for the voice vote: In favor: Against: Mr. Becker None Mrs. Fenrich Mrs. Kujawa Mr. Rego Mr. Winkler The voice vote was unanimous in favor, and the motion was passed. The meeting adjourned at 4:31 p.m.