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.
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.
The important question is how many Owen Sound residents are benefiting from the $425,000 we are paying to operate the Gallery? How many residents actually visit the Gallery to view the collection each year? The last time I looked into this no one really knew since they used an automatic door counter that counted everyone passing through the doors, either coming or going, including staff, delivery people and city workers. I suspect that we could provide the same number of residents, or more, with affordable housing for what it costs us to run the Gallery.
Hopefully Council has the courage to put their Art Gallery expansion plans on the ballot in the form of a Referendum in the next election. If they do, I suspect it will have less than 5% support, especially if they show the real cost of the expansion which will be in the order of $25 million.
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.
The important question is how many Owen Sound residents are benefiting from the $425,000 we are paying to operate the Gallery? How many residents actually visit the Gallery to view the collection each year? The last time I looked into this no one really knew since they used an automatic door counter that counted everyone passing through the doors, either coming or going, including staff, delivery people and city workers. I suspect that we could provide the same number of residents, or more, with affordable housing for what it costs us to run the Gallery.
Hopefully Council has the courage to put their Art Gallery expansion plans on the ballot in the form of a Referendum in the next election. If they do, I suspect it will have less than 5% support, especially if they show the real cost of the expansion which will be in the order of $25 million.
No typo!
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.