City Council Minutes 2018 05 15 - Laserfiche WebLink

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City Council Meeting Minutes May 15, 2018 Page 3 of 10 • Work space for staff and volunteers; • Space to accommodate school group classes inside when there is inclement weather and the ability to offer summer camps and interior and exterior rentals (particularly with the addition of the ADA restroom); • An opportunity to strengthen the presence of Louisville history downtown; • A Visitor Center to serve as a starting point for non-residents and tourists looking for an introduction to the City's past and present; and • The economic development opportunities associated with enhanced Museum amenities and the addition of a visitor center. These go along with the museum's mission to collect, preserve and share Louisville history as well as promote the history. The Foundation commissioned a feasibility study in anticipation of helping with fundraising. The Foundation has not embarked on any other plans until they know how Council would like to proceed. Dan Mellish, 590 W. Willow Ct., chair of the Historical Commission, was excited by the recent vote approving use of the Historical Preservation Fund for operation and maintenance of the museum. The Louisville History Foundation, which he is also a part of, is building off this momentum with a Love Louisville campaign. He asked for more concrete direction from Council before starting the fund raising effort for a new Museum building. He noted the benefits and challenges of working with the City. They need City support to be successful. He noted moving the storage offsite was not a free option either. The Visitor's Center would draw from surrounding areas with the proper outreach. He asked Council take action to continue making history. Ray Merenstein, consultant with RDM Communications who did the fundraising feasibility study, stated the study looked at what the community can do with the empty plot of land on the museum campus. He looked at the master plan and questioned whether people would be philanthropic in whatever role the space would play for the downtown area. He noted the conceptualization of the space with the variety of use, momentum from the ballot for the preservation tax and need for community space, storage, office space, tourism, economic development opportunities and as a place- maker. There could be innovation, engagement and opportunity to show the community how to move forward with history to preserve the past and engage in the future. He felt 2 — 2.5 million dollars can be raised philanthropically. Lead donors could raise as much a 1.9 million. He summarized the new museum could be a center for digitization, a city center, a community gateway, an activity anchor and a historical campus. Sharing those things along with the city partnership gets to a shared vision. Museum Coordinator Bacon summarized the five funding options: 1. Status quo: Do not develop the Museum & Visitor Center building 2. Building and other onsite capital improvements are funded through a ballot issue (Historic Preservation Tax to support operations/maintenance.)