Museums and Cultural Arts Commission Meeting

MINUTES COLTON HALL MUSEUM AND CULTURAL ARTS COMMISSION Monday, April 28, 2014 4:00 PM COUNCIL CHAMBER, FEW MEMORIAL HALL OF RECORDS MONTEREY, CALIFORNIA Commissioners Present: Dias, Evans, Greenwald, Marohn, Ruhnke, Wojtkowski Commissioners Absent: Schneider Ex-Officio and Staff Museums, Cultural Arts and Archives Manager Dennis Members Present: Copeland, Community Services and Library Director Kim Bui- Burton, Recording Secretary Teresa Nash Ex-Officio Commissioners are non-voting members, appointed pursuant to MCC § 2-11. CALL TO ORDER CONSENT ITEMS Approval of Minutes 1. Monday, March 24, 2014 Action: Approved with corrections by Commissioner Ruhnke and Wojtkowski (6-0-1, Schneider absent). ***End of Consent Agenda*** PUBLIC COMMENTS None. INFORMATIONAL REPORTS & STAFF COMMENTS 2. Receive Museum and Cultural Arts Division Activity Report - March 2014 Action: Report received. Museums, Cultural Arts and Archives Manager Copeland said the attendance numbers are good, and noted they vary from year to year, especially the PBL depending on when tours are held. He stated that a good part of staff time was spent in planning and working on the proposed budget. He noted Museums and Cultural Arts has established a great relationship with the CSUMB Service Learning Program and with the CSUMB student interns who are learning basic museum practices, completing inventories, and helped with the Brown Steinbeck book collection. He said this program is working out well and staff is looking forward to the next group to teach them about history and art. Commissioner Wojtkowski inquired how the visitors from the cruise ships found out about Colton Hall. Manager Copeland said this is a new cruise line coming to Monterey and that staff had contacted them about adding tours of historical sites while visiting here and that the Visitor’s Center also provides information on Colton Hall. Director Bui-Burton also stated that the Harbor Master’s office oversees the cruise ships and that staff have been telling visitors about places to visit. Commissioner Greenwald also said that websites like Trip Advisor also give us additional visitors based on others' comments.  Colton Hall Museum and Cultural Arts Commission Minutes Monday, April 28, 2014 Commissioner Wojtkowski inquired about the iPads at the PBL and how they will be used. Manager Copeland said a guide could provide an iPad and it would provide visitors a virtual tour that lasts 8 to 10 minutes when they cannot visit the site directly. Commissioner Wojtkowski asked for a copy when it is completed. Commissioner Ruhnke also inquired if there will be a video done on the Colton Hall reenactments. Manager Copeland noted these are recommendations in the Master Plan. Commissioner Greenwald said many institutions encourage visitors to add comments to sites like Trip Advisor and we should encourage our visitors to do the same, which will help raise the profile of these sites. Community Services and Library Director Bui-Burton reported the proposed budget for Fiscal Year 2014-2015 is being reviewed by the Budget Committee. She noted the Council appointed Mike McCarthy as the new City Manager and Hans Uslar has been appointed as Assistant City Manager; the new Finance Director is Jimmy Forbis; and Danial Pick has been appointed as the new Deputy City Manager, Plans and Public Works. She reviewed the CIP supplemental budget requests for floor finishing, heritage tourism brochure, and to improve the cell phone tour experience with signage. She said the Council may have a study session to review the Colton Hall Interpretive Plan and June will be the earliest it could go to Council for their approval. Director Bui-Burton noted we do not have the space or security to store our most valuable pieces; they are stored at La Mirada vault. She said a lot of staff work is in maintaining the artwork. Commissioner Greenwald inquired if the City vault is not usable. Director Bui-Burton and Manager Copeland stated that it is not climate controlled or secure enough. PUBLIC APPEARANCE New Business 3. Receive Report on the Use of Open Flame Candles in Colton Hall Museum Action: Report received. Museums, Cultural Arts and Archives Manager Copeland stated that, at the last meeting, the Commissioners decided to review this item again with a full Commission. He said the Colton Hall Museum Interpretive Plan includes the recommendation to replace the open flame candles with battery operated candles because of the high fire hazard and danger to people and the historical collection. He reviewed the Fire Department's' special permit requirements for the use of open flames during public events with strict guidelines which staff abide by. He also noted his discussion with Deputy Fire Marshal David Reade on the potential fire hazards, including the alarming statistics the Deputy Fire Marshall provided. He also noted his research on museums which have discontinued use of open flame candles. He noted that he understood why the consultants made this recommendation in the interpretive plan as following best practices for museums. He said it is a liability for the City and presents a potential risk in our stewardship of Colton Hall. Commissioner Dias said she read the minutes from the last meeting and said she would like to see the open flame candles stay. She said she understands the liability issue, but noted a Fire Marshall’s job is to be overly caution. Commissioner Marohn inquired if we have ever had an issue with the open flame candles in the past. Manager Copeland said none that he is aware of in Colton Hall. Commissioner Wojtkowski said he was in a restaurant and the only lighting they had was live candles. He stated he still supports having open flame candles in Colton Hall for events. Colton Hall Museum Cultural Art Commission Meeting Minutes Monday, April 28, 2014 2  Colton Hall Museum and Cultural Arts Commission Minutes Monday, April 28, 2014 Commissioner Greenwald stated it seems like there is so much that is no longer authentic; we need to keep the candles. Commissioner Evans noted there are two chandeliers with eight candles; we have the special permit and staff is trained. He said to keep the candles. Commissioner Ruhnke stated we can bring this item back to the Commission for consideration and approval and make a recommendation to the City Council. Director Bui-Burton said it could possibly go to Council in May or June. 4. Receive Report on Colton Hall Preservation Project Funded by Neighborhood Improvement Program (NIP) for Fiscal Year 2013-2014 Action: Report received. Museums, Cultural Arts and Archives Manager Copeland said the Neighborhood Improvement Program (NIP) voted on Thursday, April 24 and reviewed the projects submitted, including Phase II of the Colton Hall Preservation Project. He said Phase I recommendations were from the major recommendations list of the 2012 Updated Historic Structure Report and these were approved for FY 2013-2014. The NIP approved for submission to the City Council Phase II of the Colton Hall project for the upcoming FY 2014-2015. He noted a recent discovery is the Colton Hall roof needs to be repaired. Community Services and Library Director Bui-Burton said there is a need for infrastructure repairs and a lot of ours are historical. Commissioner Dias asked about the ADA requirements and timeline. Director Bui-Burton stated we received the information too late to request NIP funding this year; she said we will request CIP funding for the ADA issues. Commissioner Dias asked if NIP gives us $125,000 towards the roof repair, where will the additional money come from. Manager Copeland stated it’s a much smaller surface area than the Library roof repairs which cost $250,000. All Phase II repairs are included in the $125,000. Manager Copeland stated staff is looking at various ideas and costs for ADA assessment study with recommendations. The ADA project for Colton Hall will depend on the recommendations of the assessment study. 5. Receive Report on Museums & Cultural Arts Site Projects for Proposed Neighborhood Improvement Program (NIP) Approval and Funding for Fiscal Year 2014-2015 Action: Report received. Museums, Cultural Arts and Archives Manager Copeland said the Neighborhood Improvement Program (NIP) voted on Thursday, April 24 and reviewed the projects submitted: NM-10, Cannery Row Worker Shacks Refurbish; NM-11, Lower Presidio Historic Park Stables, Phase I; and NM-12, Presidio Pathway to Serra Monument. He stated these projects follow recommendations in the Lower Presidio Historic Park Master Plan. Manager Copeland stated these projects were submitted by the New Monterey Neighborhood representative. The NIP approved the stables project but that the other two projects were not selected. Commissioner Wojtkowski said most people don’t know where the stables or the Serra monument are located; the Cannery Row Workers Shacks are seen every day by a lot of people. Manager Copeland said the Workers Shacks project is to refurbish the buildings. Director Bui-Burton thanked Commissioner Wojtkowski for coming to the meetings to speak on behalf of these projects. Colton Hall Museum Cultural Art Commission Meeting Minutes Monday, April 28, 2014 3 Colton Hall Museum and Cultural Arts Commission Minutes Monday, April 28, 2014 Commissioner Dias said she would like to see more signage for the stables, Serra Monument and Workers Shacks, to promote them and help people find their way. She inquired if we have ever explored having someone sponsor the Workers Shacks, like the Cannery Row Company, etc. Director Bui-Burton stated the Council is looking at sponsorships and will review at an upcoming meeting. COMMISSIONER COMMENTS Commissioner Evans said after touring the Lower Presidio Historic Park, it was clear that we needed to do something about the stables sooner than later and he’s very glad this project was voted in by the NIP Committee. Commissioner Greenwald said if you’re looking for something fun to do in Monterey check out Trip Advisor and see how Colton Hall rates. Commissioner Wojtkowski reported that he and Bob Evans are working on keeping Ed Leeper’s books alive with little libraries that go in neighborhoods to commemorate Ed. He said he heard that Art in the Adobes is not going to be held this year. Director Bui-Burton said she has not heard anything officially. Commissioner Marohn said he is looking forward to seeing the City’s potential sponsorship policy. Commissioner Dias asked if the environmental determination portion of the agenda reports could be consolidated so there is only one report. She asked if anyone knows what is happening on May 10 in Monterey; Historic Monterey is having a Scavenger Hunt to gather interest in Historic Monterey. She said they need to do better advertising and will send something out to the commission for them to share with others. She is concerned that we are not focused on promoting our history. Commissioner Ruhnke said the Strategic Plan Subcommittee members (Evans, Marohn and Wojtkowski) will get together to update plan. Commissioner Ruhnke noted that Commissioner Elizabeth Schneider was in a car accident and is home healing and we hope to see her back in June. NEXT MEETING Monday, May 19, 2014 Chair Ruhnke adjourned the meeting at 5:07 p.m. Respectfully Submitted, Approved, Dennis Copeland, Manager Jennifer Ruhnke, Chair Museums, Cultural Arts and Archives Colton Hall Museum & Cultural Arts Commission Colton Hall Museum Cultural Art Commission Meeting Minutes Monday, April 28, 2014 4