Tag Archives: Museum Collaboration Group

Museum Block, Peoria County

County takes charge of museum project

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PRM LogoI received a copy of the following letter in the mail from an anonymous source. The letter is on State’s Attorney letterhead and is signed by Kevin Lyons. It’s not addressed to anyone in particular — in fact, it looks more like a memo than a letter:

RE: Persons and organizations vested in the Peoria Riverfront Museum project

On Thursday, August 13, 2009, the Peoria County Board certified a necessary resolution that will inform the Illinois Department of Revenue that, commencing January 1, 2010, a special sales tax shall be collected throughout the County of Peoria (County) to carry out the objectives of the March, 2009, referendum. The County is pleased to partner with your efforts, and with the fine men and women of Caterpillar, to organize and shape a superior project that, when complemented by The Caterpillar Experience, will serve well the many interests of this enterprise and all of Central Illinois.

To that end, the County of Peoria will provide the appropriate guidance for creating the organization(s) necessary to develop and to carry out the objectives of the project. As this is no time to learn as we go, I have engaged well experienced counsel at the law firm of McDermott Will & Emery to help provide for this important detail and direction. I have, in part, carefully selected this reputable firm because of their long history of experience with issues relative to museums, including those public and private and blended, and their appreciation for the broad collaboration of interests that birthed and brought this project to its place today.

Because it will be largely funded by public money, through sale of non-general obligation revenue bonds, it is important that the project commence and operate in compliance with public policy and statutes. A gathering of all interested parties will be planned for September so that the County may provide detailed framework that can be followed in order to formally organize, commence, develop, construct, and carry through the project.

This will involve, but certainly not be limited to, the following items:

  1. The organization and eventual tax exempt qualification of a museum authority. The museum authority would serve as lead coordinator for the project’s space, programming, and development.
  2. A description of roles and responsibilities of a museum authority and the steps required to form a board of directors and all other necessary project components.
  3. An explanation of how funding will be delivered and how the County and the museum authority will develop and refine the project, and how entities (licensees) will occupy and operate within the project.
  4. As with any County capital development project, construction of the project would be bid, let and overseen/administered by the County.
  5. The County would engage the museum authority to operate the project pursuant to the terms of an operating agreement and, upon completion of construction of the project, and pursuant to the operating agreement, the county would deliver the project to the museum authority for operation.
  6. The museum authority would annually account to the County regarding financial performance and community benefit.
  7. A clear and partnered coordination with Caterpillar, Inc., to insure that the project and The Caterpillar Experience, and the many shared goals and responsibilities attendant thereto, are smoothly addressed and accomplished.
  8. Although licensees and entities may be otherwise self-identified, it is understood that the project will be named exclusively Peoria Riverfront Museum.

    9. Your overwhelming efforts, along with ballot box support and the work of others, can permit you and your communities to now step closer to the realization of a magnificent facility along the Peoria riverfront. A September gathering will further assist everyone in understanding, in greater detail, how this significant project can now launch and grow.

    Thank you for your meaningful contributions on behalf of the citizens of Peoria County and all of the greater Peoria area.

    Very truly yours,
    KEVIN W. LYONS
    State’s Attorney

There are a few notable things here:

  • Transfer of Power: First of all, the letter states that in order for “the project [to] commence and operate in compliance with public policy and statutes,” a tax-exempt “museum authority” would need to be organized. This is interesting because there’s already a tax-exempt umbrella organization called the Museum Collaboration Group (MCG). The MCG has, to this point, been calling the shots on everything regarding the proposed museum. But now, it appears that will be coming to an end.

    The new “museum authority,” under the guidance of a newly-established board of directors, will “serve as lead coordinator for the project’s space, programming, and development.” It will be a separate entity from the County, and will also be in charge of museum operations.

    This can be characterized as nothing less than a transfer of power. I suppose it could just be a renaming/reorganization of the MCG, but why that would be necessary (other than providing some additional billing for lawyers) is mysterious to me. It will be most interesting to see who gets a seat on the new museum authority’s board of directors . . . and who doesn’t get a seat.

  • Bidding/letting overseen by County: Museum representatives have long touted their “unprecedented agreement among Caterpillar, the Museum Collaboration Group and the Greater Peoria Area Contractors and Suppliers Association,” promising that “both the Peoria Riverfront Museum and the Caterpillar Experience would be built with 100 percent local union labor.” However, that may be a promise they can’t keep, given that Peoria County Code 6.5-21(9) requires:

    All bids and contracts for the purposes of public works, as defined and provided for by the Illinois Prevailing Wage Act (Act), 820 ILCS 130/1 et seq., prohibit the prime contractor and all participating subcontractors from discriminating in employment practices. This act requires that the prevailing wage shall apply to these projects. [820 ILCS 130/2 specifies: “‘Public works’ means all fixed works constructed by any public body, other than work done directly by any public utility company, whether or not done under public supervision or direction, or paid for wholly or in part out of public funds.”]

    Clearly, under this statute, a non-local and non-union shop could very well have the winning bid, and the County would have to award it. This isn’t a new revelation. The question came up during the County’s public forums on the referendum, but the local unions continued to support the referendum anyway, and museum supporters continued to promise that local union labor would definitely be used. It will be interesting to see what bids come in, and who wins.

  • Don’t change the name: It looks they want to avoid this fiasco from happening again. Apparently the name of the Peoria Riverfront Museum is now non-negotiable.
City of Peoria, Museum Block, Peoria County, Peoria Park District

More than just sales taxes may support museum

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Did you know that your property taxes indirectly support Lakeview Museum? Karrie Alms does. She’s a community activist and frequent commenter here at the Peoria Chronicle. While doing her usual detailed research, she came across a property tax levy fund titled “Fund 123 MUSEUM PEORIA PARK.” That caught her eye, so she asked Park Board President Tim Cassidy about it. He explained:

Presently Lakeview museum owns and operates museum operations. The PPD [Peoria Park District] owns the land and building and allows Lakeview to use it under an agreement that is now several decades old.

Mr. Cassidy also confirmed that Lakeview does not pay rent for its use of the building, and “the amount of [the] museum fund levy going to Lakeview museum facility is $189,234 per the 2009 budget.” Not having to pay rent or upkeep on the building and grounds surely helps Lakeview’s bottom line and also explains why they didn’t include funds for capital improvement in their pro forma for the proposed downtown museum.

So, what happens if/when the museum moves downtown? As I reported in a previous post (“Is Peoria’s History Getting a Back Seat?” July 13, 2007) after talking to museum officials, “When the new museum opens, Lakeview is planning to hang on to its building at Lake and University to be used for storage because there’s not going to be enough storage space at the new museum. In particular, there’s not very much space planned in the new museum for special, climate-controlled storage of fragile pieces.” However, it doesn’t appear that the Park District has agreed to let the museum continue to use the building. Cassidy told Alms:

If Lakeview museum left the site to go downtown [its] continued [use] of present site would be subject to further agreement based on PPD needs for the facility. […] PPD has no final plans for Lakeview facility use if museum leaves. It remains open for discussion, although one use considered is a senior recreation/leisure facility for programming needs.

Cassidy also said that continued use of the Lakeview building “has never been approved by PPD. In fact specific request has not been made for PPD to formally act.”

If the new museum is unable to use the current Lakeview building for storage, they will have to find storage elsewhere. Without a rent-free (i.e., taxpayer-subsidized) facility to use, cost of that storage would impact the museum’s profitability. The Museum Collaboration Group can’t just assume they will be able to continue using that building (rent-free, at that) when their lease expires in 2012. Off-site, specialized storage costs should be figured into their pro forma.

The Park District/Lakeview Museum arrangement also raises another question. In the ground lease the Museum Collaboration Group signed with the City of Peoria for the old Sears block, it has this interesting provision:

11.2 Permitted Assignees. Notwithstanding anything in this Lease to the contrary, Tenant may assign Tenant’s interest in the Lease as follows:

11.2.1 Peoria Park District. Provided the District (“Peoria Park District”) agrees, the Tenant may assign Tenant’s leasehold interest in this Lease to the Peoria Park District, subject to the following: (i) Tenant shall not be relieved of any of its obligations under this Lease and Redevelopment Agreement; (ii) the Peoria Park District shall be obligated to observe the terms and conditions of the Lease applicable to Tenant; provided, however, that the Peoria Park District shall have no personal liability to Landlord, Tenant or any third parties with respect to the Lease, the Redevelopment Agreement or the Real Property, with such liability limited strictly to Tenant’s leasehold interest in the Lease; and (iii) the Landlord shall be entitled to enforce the provisions of the Lease and the Redevelopment Agreement directly against the Tenant, who shall continue to have available to it all the rights and obligations of the Tenant under this Lease and Redevelopment Agreement notwithstanding such assignment.

The “Tenant” would be the Peoria Riverfront Museum, and the “obligations under this lease” would include repair, maintenance, alterations, and additions to the building and grounds. If the museum were to assign its interest in the lease to the Park District, then the Park District could use its funds — i.e., Peoria property taxes — to maintain the building and grounds. Here you can check about student loan interest deduction with guide of an experienced firm like taxfyle. That would certainly be more than taxpayers bargained for if they approve the sales tax referendum on April’s ballot.

No deal has been made to assign the lease to the Park District at this time according to Cassidy. But the legal language is in place and could be acted upon if the sales tax referendum is approved and construction of the facility is allowed to proceed. It’s something to think about when you go to the polls on April 7.

Museum Block

Museum showcases plans for “The Street”

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From a press release:

Peoria Riverfront Museum’s “The Street” to Innovatively Capture the Region’s Colorful History

Peoria – The Peoria area’s history will surprise, educate and entertain you. Peoria Riverfront Museum collaborators proved that point today as they revealed details of The Street, a major, ever-changing gallery designed to bring to life the Peoria area’s long and colorful history—from its Native American roots through the initial French settlements to its place as the All-American bellwether of U.S. taste and beyond.

Collaborators playing a key role in planning The Street, including the Peoria Historical Society (PHS), Peoria Regional Museum Society (PRMS) and African American Hall of Fame Museum (AAHFM), spoke to supporters gathered at the Hotel Pere Marquette in downtown Peoria, a few blocks away from the seven-acre site of the proposed development.

State Sen. David Koehler, a long-time proponent of the museum block, said, “I’m excited to see the groundswell of support around The Block. I know this project will bring great educational, cultural, entertainment and economic opportunities to our region.” Koehler added he’s “looking forward to visiting The Street to explore more about the Peoria area’s early years and all the people and companies who have helped to make it what it is today.”

“We’ve talked previously about the features of the Riverfront Museum, including the IMAX Theatre and the planetarium,” said Museum Collaboration Group co-Chairperson Brad McMillan. “Today, we focus on the exhibit galleries planned for the Washington Wing of the museum, particularly The Street historical galleries showcasing the region’s history and the Oral History Center, where visitors of all ages can tell their stories for generations to come.”

The collaborators unveiled specific plans for The Street, including The Square, a nearly life-size streetscape integrating real objects from the region’s past, oversize graphics, text and interactive opportunities. The Square will feature an interpretive timeline of the area’s past, as well as fascinating stories unique to Peoria—some legendary, some little known. Anchoring The Square will be a massive video projection and large-scale artifacts supporting the current theme.

PHS Board President Marilyn Leyland said The Street will be a rotating exhibit with themed portions continually changing, starting with “Pride of Peoria: Innovation and Entrepreneurship.” Focusing on Peoria as a hardworking town, this inaugural theme will highlight the businesses and industries that brought wealth to the community and continue to flourish today, as well as showcase examples of that ingenuity—from bicycles and early automobiles to distilled spirits and earthmoving equipment, plus the advertising that promoted them.

A future theme of The Street is called “Will It Play in Peoria?” It will explore the importance of Peoria audiences, from riverboat and vaudeville patrons to coveted targets of modern market research. The region’s rich history provides an endless source of engaging themes and interesting stories to tell in the future.

“And on any given day, you might run into important people from the past,” said Leyland, introducing John Parks of the PRMS. Parks came in character as inventor Charles Duryea to announce the society would donate to The Street a Duryea automobile invented 110 years ago in a garage on West Barker Avenue, along with $40,000 for maintenance and exhibits explaining the vehicle’s history. “That gas-powered vehicle started people thinking in new ways,” Parks said. “It inspired Henry Ford—and we all know what happened next.”

Another important element of The Street will be an Oral History Center with a Story Booth to feature individual stories of Peoria-area residents. “Oral history has been an especially important tradition in the African-American community,” said Margie White, representing the AAHFM. “The Oral History Center will allow visitors to capture their own history, leaving with a DVD of their recording.” Selected recordings of general interest will be used by the museum in future exhibits.

The current African American Hall of Fame exhibit would be integrated into a Wall of Fame inside the Living History Center. This exhibit will honor individuals inducted into the Hall of Fame each year for having made an outstanding contribution to the Peoria African-American community.

In addition, the Caterpillar African American Network, an affinity group within Caterpillar that supports African-American employees, will donate $12,500 to the museum on behalf of AAHFM.

McMillan announced other Washington Wing exhibits will include an International Feature Gallery for special traveling exhibits—including the best exhibits the Smithsonian Institution has to offer—and traditional exhibits of fine art and folk art based on the extensive collections of Museum Collaboration Group partners. Announcements about exhibits to be included in the Liberty Wing of the museum will be made in the coming weeks, he added.

The multifaceted Riverfront Museum will join the Caterpillar Experience as key components of a planned downtown center for the arts, education and entertainment known as The Block. The $136 million project already has garnered $90 million in commitments to date, including 86 percent of the private funding and 40 percent of the public funding needed, said Michael Bryant, chairman of the CEO Roundtable, a group of prominent business leaders working to raise $8 million and the public awareness needed to help build the Riverfront Museum.

The Journal Star’s story includes pictures and diagrams.