Gallery Advisory Committee Divided on Taxpayers’ Responsibility for the TOM
Members are split on the extent to which the City should fund the TOM, with some calling for budget cuts while others feel taxpayers aren't contributing enough at $425,000 per year.
Peter Tovell, Chair of the Tom Thomson Art Gallery Advisory Committee, opened the group’s November 6th meeting with stern words for City Council about the lack of quorum at a fundraising meeting arranged on short notice for October 30. The meeting was unable to proceed and is being rescheduled.
City of Owen Sound Not Committed to TTAG - Committee Chair Tovell
Tovell called out that City Councilors on the TTAG Advisory Committee were unable to attend. “There is very little interest, obviously, and concern in Council – or commitment to actually maintain or improve the national collection and the status of the Tom Thomson Art Gallery,” he said.
Councilors Melanie Middlebro and Brock Hamley represent the City of Owen Sound on the TTAG Advisory Committee.
As Tovell moved on to a call for new business, Middlebro interjected, “I’d like to respond to that.” She made herself available for all other dates offered, she said, and notified the chair she would be out of the country on October 30.
That was the date selected for the meeting, from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. on a Wednesday. It was announced one week ahead of time.
“I think it’s an unfair comment to say that because I wasn’t there, I have no commitment or interest at all,” Middlebro objected.
“Noted, thank you,” Tovell replied.
$425,000+ Taxpayer Burden for Gallery in 2025
With the business portion of the agenda underway, Kate Allen, Director of Corporate Services for the City of Owen Sound, gave a presentation on the gallery’s budget for 2025, which projects a tax burden of $425,465 to cover 87% of the gallery’s net operating budget for next year.
Allen presented the above slide as the Tom Thomson Art Gallery’s “detailed budget.”
City staff project $538,865 in gallery revenue in 2025, with gross operating costs of $806,471, of which $425,465 will be funded by taxpayers.
The staff cost is decreasing for 2025, Allen explained, as the gallery is moving from six full-time employees to five full-time and one part-time. The full-time Curator of Collections retired in April, and the gallery plans to hire a part-time Fundraiser for 2025.
“We are as lean as we could possibly be.” - TTAG Director
However, Allen noted that the approximately $58,000 reduction in staffing costs is subject to change as these figures do not include the cost of living or other wage adjustments based on market research that is currently underway.
Aidan Ware, Director of the TTAG, responded to a committee question about staffing levels and said they are running a “lean” operation at the TOM. Since the City folded Tourism into Arts & Culture last year, Ware pointed out, 0.4 of her position is dedicated to Tourism & Events.
“From all of my experience working in galleries over the past two decades, I feel that we are as lean as we could possibly be,” Ware said.
Members Hopkins and Middlebro Call for Budget Control
Committee member Tyler Hopkins disagreed and said, “I’m having a tough time with the numbers from a taxpaying citizen in Owen Sound. With the current and past two budgets, the tax burden the TOM is carrying is over $1.3 million in tax dollars.”
Last year, taxpayers chipped in $474,999.96 of the gallery’s budget, and Council allocated another $122,000 from its 2023 net year-end surplus to the TOM in April 2024 to pay off the remainder of its $617,000 debt to taxpayers from 2016-17 losses.
The gallery is open 16 hours a week, Hopkins said, and paying out over half a million dollars per year in salaries. He questioned why gallery visitors are not paying an entry fee to generate revenue from visits.
“I’m extremely dumbfounded and frustrated as a taxpayer member of this committee,” Hopkins added. He noted that he had sent an email to City Council expressing his concerns as the situation he’s observed as a committee member is “teetering on unacceptable.”
Ware responded that staff are overseeing a $30 million asset and protecting it for the City of Owen Sound and future generations.
Middlebro echoed Hopkins’ concerns and questioned whether existing gallery and tourism staff couldn’t dedicate some of their time to fundraising activities rather than hiring another person.
“I’m struggling here and feel like we have to do better,” Middlebro said. “We’re struggling to raise money from fundraising. The City has a list of a gazillion things that we need to pay for, and we don’t have any money to do it.”
Anywhere the City can find efficiencies and trim budgets needs to be examined, she said, and staffing is the City’s top cost.
Later in the meeting, when Middlebro questioned how much money staff expected the new contracted Fundraising employee to raise, Pam Coulter, Director of Community Services (which oversees the gallery) said the position’s success won’t only be measured in dollars and cents, but in community outreach and relationships, as well.
Members Tovell and Burri Call for Greater City Support
Tovell took exception to Hopkins and Middlebro’s suggestions that the gallery should operate more like a private business and look at cutting expenses. “A business is meant to make profit for individual owners. The City is actually created to serve the people of the City and provide services – not to make a profit,” he said.
Committee member Tom Burri went further and suggested the City should foot the gallery’s entire bill.
“Like Melanie, I was also a previous business owner, and like Tyler, I am also a taxpayer on this committee. And I am dumbfounded, like Tyler, that the City doesn’t pay for the whole operating budget of the TOM,” Burri said. “They expect that the TOM has to raise the funds through whatever means they can, but that fundraising should be used for adding value to the TOM, not to be used as part of the operating budget.”
Gallery Currently Over Budget & Still Looking at Feasibility of Raising Millions for Expansion
Ware gave a lengthy update report which noted that the Art Gallery budget is tracking over budget. Fundraising and general donations revenue are both underperforming while increased expenses of various types are straining the budget.
“Visitor numbers in 2024 grew to 14,324 in May to September, marking a substantial growth from previous years, with August seeing a record high of just over 4,000 visitors,” Ware reported. OPEN card membership has jumped as well, she said, and it’s when people are struggling financially that they need arts and culture the most.
Middlebro also questioned whether it was time for the gallery to deaccession some of the gallery’s artwork, since one of the major complaints from staff is a lack of space for the collection. While acknowledging it is a complicated process, she said, “There comes a time and a place where we have no more space. We have to look after the things that it makes sense for us to keep, and we have to deal with the rest.”
“Is this not the perfect time for us to really take a look at the collection and start that process?” Middlebro asked.
“We can certainly start to look at the works that are not within the scope of the parameters that we’ve defined for the collection and make a list of those items,” Ware said, then explained the process for deaccessioning, including a public consultation to ensure transparency.
When asked for an update on the status of the Fundraising Feasibility Study that Council approved in March to explore whether the community can raise $16 million for a gallery expansion, Coulter said it needs to go through the RFP process to solicit bids from consultants.
Ware has prepared material that currently sits with Coulter for review, she said, and they hope to have the RFP prepared to release by the end of 2024.
See also:
The City of Owen Sound is currently accepting applications for the Tom Thomson Art Gallery Advisory Committee. There are four vacancies to be filled, and the deadline for application is November 20. Learn more here.
Watch the November 6, 2024, meeting of the TTAG Advisory Committee here.
A museum like the Tom Thomson Gallery is a community asset, not in a financial sense but as bringing “value” to the members of the community. I believe admission needs to be free to people living here. Perhaps a library card could give access. Art is only elite because of the way it is presented. Museums and libraries molded who I am. Hang less valuable work out in the community. Pair with the library for hands on activities for both adults and children. Reduce the “elite” events for grey-haired art “literates” like me. And please do NOT sell off parts of the carefully curated collection.
Please tell me there's a typo here: "The gallery is open 16 hours a week, Hopkins said, and paying out over half a million dollars per year in salaries." That works out to something like $32K per hour.