Kitchener city council votes to give THEMUSEUM $300K to stay open
Kitchener city councillors voted in favour of giving THEMUSEUM $300,000 to avoid being forced to close.
THEMUSEUM has been in the City of Kitchener since 2010. It was originally the Waterloo Regional Children’s Museum which opened in 2003.
According to THEMUSEUM, the Children’s Museum financial model was unsustainable from the start.
“The Children's Museum was opened with a flawed financial formula, very little money. This was coming from grants and so on, and we inherited that. And we've been saddled with this underfunding ever since,” said David Marskell, CEO of THEMUSEUM.
Unanimous vote
On Monday night, after hours of debate, council unanimously voted in favour of giving THEMUSEUM the $300,000 it is asking for.
Councillors also voted in favour of an amendment to ask the Region of Waterloo to split the amount owed. So the city will be asking the region for $150,000 before July 1.
"I think council now understands the inequities of funding locally, how our own organization are funded, how this municipality is not funded by the federal government, and that it really is a dog's breakfast," said Marskell. "We really need to pull it together. I'm really glad they saw that today."
There was also an amendment on the table to defer the decision to June, but it failed.
David Marskell from THEMUSEUM at the special council meeting on May 13, 2024. (CTV Kitchener/Dan Lauckner)
Before the meeting
Staff with THEMUSEUM said the money from the one-time grant would support continuing operations with plans to work with the city to find a sustainable vision/model.
In a letter to city staff, THEMUSEM said the money would help with additional staff needed in the summer months and would help them continue all programs, camps and rentals during that time. The letter said they will also consider rebranding options.
The councillor for the area admitted that the city has been supporting the museum for years. It even operates out of the city owned building that they do not pay rent for.
“I guess what's frustrating about it is that we're at this point of emergency funding and needing to kind of see them through to be able to vision for what's next and what could be sustainable going forward,” said Stephanie Stretch, ward 10 councillor, before the meeting.
Report to council
In a report that went to city councillors on Monday, city staff recommended giving $300,000 to THEMUSEUM but with some stipulations including a collaborative negotiation process to look at changing THEMUSEUM’s business model to one that would be sustainable in the future.
City staff said in the report that losing THEMUSEUM would be a “significant impact on the community”. The report goes on to say losing the facility would mean a loss to core programming like exhibits for educational learning. Staff also noted a loss of summer camps, tourism traffic and community events without THEMUSEUM.
“We can't lose this,” said Marskell. “There’s two scenarios for downtown Kitchener, one with THEMUSEUM and one without one. And I don't think anybody wants to see that scenario with one without.”
Marskell added that bringing in exhibits that bring in guests costs money and he isn’t sure if scaling back is the route to go.
“Scaling back is a tough one because as soon as you scale back and you don't bring in exhibits, then your attendance goes down and your membership goes down and it starts to implode,” he said.
He hopes they don’t have to close but if it did come to that, he wants to ensure it happens right away.
“Our board has said we have enough money in our reserves should we close, should we be forced to close, we have enough money to pay our bills and to wind down, take care of our staff in an orderly manner and walk away with heads held high,” Marskell said.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
BREAKING N.S. Progressive Conservatives win second majority government; NDP to form opposition
For the second time in a row, Tim Houston's Progressive Conservatives have won a majority government in Nova Scotia. But this time, the NDP will form the official opposition.
Paul Bernardo denied parole after victims' families plead he be kept behind bars
Notorious killer and rapist Paul Bernardo has been denied parole for a third time after the families of his victims made an emotional plea to the Parole Board of Canada on Tuesday to keep him behind bars.
'We would likely go out of business': Canadian business owners sound the alarm over Trump's tariffs
Business leaders across Canada are voicing concerns and fear over the widespread impact increased tariffs could have on their companies and workers, with some already looking to boost sales in other markets in the event their products become too expensive to sell to American customers.
Israel, Hezbollah agree to ceasefire brokered by U.S. and France, to take effect Wednesday
A ceasefire between Israel and Iran-backed group Hezbollah will take effect on Wednesday after both sides accepted an agreement brokered by the United States and France, U.S. President Joe Biden said on Tuesday.
Longtime member of Edmonton theatre community dies during 'A Christmas Carol' performance
Edmonton's theatre community is in mourning after an actor died during a performance of "A Christmas Carol" at the Citadel Theatre on Sunday.
'We need to address those issues': Alberta Premier Danielle Smith won't denounce Trump tariff threat
Alberta Premier Danielle Smith says Canada should address U.S. president-elect Donald Trump's border concerns in the next two months, before he's back in the White House, instead of comparing our situation to Mexico's and arguing the tariff threats are unjustified.
Loonie tanks after Trump threatens tariffs on Canadian goods
The Canadian dollar fell to its lowest level since May 2020 after Donald Trump threatened to impose tariffs on Canadian goods shipped to the United States once he takes office in January.
Should Canada retaliate if Trump makes good on 25 per cent tariff threat?
After U.S. president-elect Donald Trump threatened to impose a 25 per cent tariff on all Canadian imports on his first day back in the White House unless his border concerns are addressed, there is mixed reaction on whether Canada should retaliate.
'We need to do better': Canadian leaders respond to Trump's border concerns
As U.S. president-elect Donald Trump threatens Canada with major tariffs, sounding alarms over the number of people and drugs illegally crossing into America, Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre and some premiers say they agree that more could be done.