City of Jacksonville Heritage Cultural Center Board met Dec. 4.
Here is the minutes provided by the board:
The meeting (held in the Jacksonville Municipal Building Mayor’s Conference Room) was called to order at 5:15 p.m. by David Blanchette, Chairman. Those present included David Blanchette, Cynthia Boehlke, Patsy Erickson, Diane Hollendonner, Laura Marks, Lynne Phillips, and James Pisell. Absent were Michael Burke, John Clancy, Kyla Hurt, Charles Rice, Samantha Sauer, Brittany Henry (Ex-Officio), and Judy Tighe (Ex-Officio). Steve Varble attended as marketing consultant.
Minutes of the November 7, 2019 meeting were approved as distributed.
The Chairman announced that Trevor Lawson had submitted a letter of resignation due to changes in his job and residence. His resignation was accepted with regret. This puts board membership at the correct number of members, so a new board member will not need to be appointed.
Treasurer James Pisell reported a balance of $43,280.74 in the checking account (no change from previous month).
COMMITTEE REPORTS:
Administrative: The board voted to approve the proposed slate of officers for 2020: Chairman, David Blanchette; Vice Chairman/Treasurer James Pisell; and Secretary, Diane Hollendonner.
JB Large has completed the patch/paint work in the Old Post Office, at a final cost of $22,100 which turned out to be over the bid of $15,700 for the work. It was voted to authorize payment of $15,700 and to request documentation on the additional cost in a separate invoice. The installation of the security system has been added to the contractor’s work schedule, and should be in progress at the end of December/first part of January. At that point, museum holdings will be moved from storage into the building. The area Master Gardeners have agreed to add the exterior landscaping of the building to their list of projects, and to work to make it attractive.
David Blanchette has applied for a $5000 grant from Landmarks Illinois for window restoration.
No report on re-introductory event for past museum members. Our museum historians have added several names to the “famous people in Jacksonville” list. Blanchette will be meeting with Jeremy Carrell, Volunteer Services Director at the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum, on December 12 to discuss volunteer training. The disaster preparedness plan and museum use policy are almost finished.
Collections: Descendants of former Jacksonville mayor John R. Davis have offered to donate items and photographs related to his term of service. Blanchette will pick up these items and display at the January meeting for consideration.
After the security system is installed and before moving the museum collection into the building, it will need extensive cleaning to clear up construction dust, probably including the ductwork. Some of the work may need to be contracted professionally.
Exhibits: Steve Varble shared ideas for specific exhibit spaces, emphasizing that the museum collection will need to be sorted and examined once it has been moved into the building in order to group items together to tell specific stories related to themes of famous people, institutions, events, and businesses. An “orientation” corner needs to introduce the Jacksonville story to visitors; Laura Marks will start working on an outline for a video to show how the city grew as homes and businesses and institutions were added over the years.
Cindy Boehlke reported that the Jacksonville Children’s Foundation had approved a grant for $330 towards the Mrs. Tucker puzzle and exhibit area, with the check to be awarded in January. She and David Blanchette plan to look in the storage area for the Mrs. Tucker flooring piece on December 5. It was suggested that the Snow White/dwarves dolls have masks of the characters made available for children to play with.
Michael Burke’s students in the JHS AP History classes selected the Capps Factory sign, the South Jacksonville school scoreboard, the State Hospital plaque, and the Central Cash & Carry sign for their exhibit, which should be ready to set up in February/March.
Promotion: Steve Varble and Laura Marks are working on a timeline for promoting the museum opening, and will be looking for photographs of progress (Children’s Foundation grant, moving items to Old Post Office building, etc.) to build anticipation. The new Facebook page may be launched in January, followed by the new website in the spring. Need to order some “generic” business cards with contact information to hand out when people express interest, and schedule a media event to inform the public on what plans for opening are. Blanchette will speak to Mayor Ezard about the E. State Street project, and request that the parking space that currently extends into the driveway be eliminated.
The Sunrise Rotary Club is scheduled meet at the Old Post Office building on December 10.
OLD BUSINESS: None.
NEW BUSINESS: Laura Marks asked if there would be a sales/souvenir area, and if so what would be sold there. There are Morgan County Historical Society publications available, and museum-related items could be developed.
There were no public comments.
The next meeting will be held on Thursday, January 2, 5:15 p.m., in the Mayor’s Conference Room at the Jacksonville Municipal Building.
With no further business or announcements to discuss, the meeting adjourned at 6:35 p.m.
http://cms6.revize.com/revize/jacksonvilleil/city_government/boards_commissions_and_committees/docs/Boards%20Commissions%20Committees/HCC_Minutes/2019/HCC%20Minutes%2012.4.19.pdf
Alerts Sign-up