Museum plan moving forward

December 17, 2013 · 0 Comments

By Mark Pavilons

King is moving ahead with its Museum Strategic Business Plan, after tweaking its plan of attack recently.
King council recently received a staff report that set out the guiding principles for the future of the plan.
While the majority of recommendations were given the green light, the only conditions are funding. In the report submitted by museum curator Kathleen Fry and parks, recreation and culture director Chris Fasciano, the total cost of implementing the plan would hit $880,000.
The financing, however, is contingent on council and Township priorities and commitments; King’s ability to finance through various methods; priorities within the parks, recreation and culture department, and validation of the direction by stakeholders and the public.
The draft plan was presented to council in September. Staff then received feedback from community groups and local stakeholders. Over the past two months, staff with met with many concerned parties, resulting in a lot of good feedback.
Many terms were clarified, as well as the process and roles of a community advisory group. Partnerships, volunteer participation and a clear direction were also discussed.
The plan now proposes to create a Community Museum Board to handle recruitment, allow for more autonomy and allow for expansion. The purpose of the group would focus on supporting the plan, its goals, vision and mission through marketing, fundraising and preservation.
Most agreed the Museum needs to be more accessible to the public and this would be achieved through physical improvements and increased business hours, Fry said.
Terms of reference for the museum board are being revamped, and staff is working to have this completed by June of 2014.
More volunteers are needed and hopes are there will be an open dialogue with the King Historical Society regarding certain bequest monies.
The plan will also involve strengthening existing partnerships and creating new collaborative projects. One thing already in the works is a special campaign in 2014 to mark the 100th anniversary of the beginning of the First World War.
The plan is well in line with principles contained in the Community Sustainability Plan.
“Generally we are very pleased with the direction created by the plan,” Fry said.
The community board was a difficult concept to sort out, specifically in terms of qualifying for a provincial operating grant.
“The creation of this new board will give the members more autonomy while still adhering to the provincial standards. Previously as a committee of council they had to follow the recruitment policies, now they can recruit on their own and members can come on board for short term projects or events. They will still be a recognized, approved committee but will have a broader mandate.”
Fry said in moving forward, the first step is to work with the clerks department, parks, recreation and culture and the existing board to create new terms of reference. Once that’s completed, they will start to recruit members from the community.
Fry is also constantly looking for other sources of funding, through grants and other venues. The heritage bus tour remains as a key public event.