Greater Sudbury city councillors were unwilling to turn their backs on the city's history and heritage as they voted to reinstate the curator position for the four museums in the area.
The finance and administration committee picked up their budget discussions once again on March 3, digging into the guts of their $630 million operating budget.
The city's executive leadership team has been tasked with shaving $14 million from the budget in order to realize a tax increase of 3.9 per cent, and one of the proposed savings in the draft budget was to cut the curator position from the city's four museums at a savings of $156,023.
Ward 2 Coun. Michael Vagnini tabled a motion to reinstate the money into the budget through one-time funding from the tax rate stabilization reserve, and to have staff return with a report to council by the third quarter of 2021 outlining the future of museum services and alternatives for council's consideration.
"It draws the people not only from their heritage, but also to their families," said Vagnini.
"To see the size of the events that go on (at the museums) at a minimal cost because there are more volunteer hours that go into this, but we need the direction of the curator to keep it in a position going forward that's going to make it effective for the whole city."
The funding to offset reinstating the curator position would be drawn from the tax rate stabilization reserve on a one-time basis, a reserve that had around $977,000 in it as of November 2020.
"What councillor Vagnini is asking to do here is bring this forward on a one-time basis to fund this for this year and look into it further with a museums review to take place in 2021," said finance committee chair Mike Jakubo.
Ward 12 Coun. Joscelyne Landry-Altmann spoke passionately in favour of the city's museums and the importance of the curator position in maintaining the heritage and history of Greater Sudbury.
"In keeping with the principles of a healthy community, Greater Sudbury heritage museums act as a community ambassador bridging the past, present and future," said Landry-Altmann, reading from the museums' strategic plan from 2012.
"Through its effort, the heritage museums tell the stories of its predecessors that continue to shape Greater Sudbury's collective cultural identity and create a sense of pride in our past and who we are as a people."
In 2020, the museums pivoted to provide digital museum content and worked to increase their online reach and public engagement. The museums also continued major capital improvements to Anderson Farm Museum.
Service level expectations at the city's four museums (Anderson Farm, Copper Cliff, Flour Mill, Rayside-Balfour) are slated at around 2,000 operating hours across the four, with Rayside-Balfour accounting for more than half of those hours at 1,144.
Ward 8 Coun. Al Sizer was the lone vote in opposition of the amendment brought forward by Vagnini, raising some concern over using the tax rate stabilization reserve.
"With this fund it's my understanding that it's not there to fund new projects or existing programs; isn't it there as a rainy day area that if we run into an area where we have an extreme overage, so we don't go back to our tax levy and it saves the taxpayer in that case?" said Sizer.
Jakubo told Sizer that he was correct in his understanding of the reserve, but reminded the councillor that Vagnini's motion was simply asking for a one-time funding source.
"It's not prudent to use that to fund as an ongoing service level where there will be costs every year," said Jakubo. "It is appropriate to ask that it be used to fund one-time projects and expenses and that's what's being asked."
Sizer held his ground, asking that the tax rate stabilization reserve be left alone and that staff move forward with the report that Vagnini was asking for.
Ward 3 Coun. Gerry Montpellier spoke of the community and economic benefits that the museums offer, nodding to the free events held at Anderson Farm that draw large crowds to the area.
"Free events over at Anderson Farm in the fall, we'll bring in 400 to 500 cars from all over Ontario...tourists spending money in our community and all the people smiling because they didn't have to spend a lot of money," said Montpellier.
"I'm highly disappointed that this was a viable look at our budget, let's take care of our business please."
Ian Wood, executive director of strategic initiatives, communications and citizen services had some blunt words when speaking about the report on museums that will be coming to council later this year.
"We will be coming forward to council with a report in 2021 in regard to the future of museums and one of those options would be a closure plan," said Wood.
Landry-Altmann bristled at the idea of closing the city's museums, asking for clarification from Wood to confirm that closing the city's museums was an option that was on the table.
"We would need to bring forward a report that considers all options," said Wood. "If the budget is reduced and the curator position no longer exists we would have to discuss options for the future in terms of what happens with the physical assets and what happens with the artifacts."
Landry-Altmann echoed Montpellier's disappointment that the option to cut the curator position was even being considered.
"I agree with Coun. Montpellier that this is quite disappointing that we have to discuss someone's job in public," said Landry-Altmann.
"The consequences of not having a curator, does that mean that all of the artifacts that have been collected over the years, and there are decades of artifacts that have been collected, would be what? Sold at a garage sale? Is that what we're going to do? Is that what our heritage is worth?"
