City of Jacksonville Heritage Cultural Center Board met Feb. 6.
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 5:17 p.m. by David Blanchette, Chairman. Those present included David Blanchette, Cynthia Boehlke, Michael Burke, Patsy Erickson, Diane Hollendonner, James Pisell, and Samantha Sauer. Absent were John Clancy, Kyla Hurt, Laura Marks, Lynne Phillips, Charles Rice, Brittany Henry (Ex-Officio), and Judy Tighe (Ex-Officio). Steve Varble attended as marketing consultant.
The minutes of the December 4, 2019 and the January 2, 2020 board meetings were approved as distributed.
Treasurer James Pisell reported that the checking account balance on November 29 was $43,280.74 with a balance of $26,642.65 on December 31 following payment of $16,638.09 to JB Large for painting and plaster repair. In January, an additional $9,116.81 was paid for the remainder of the bill for painting and for shelving for the collections room. The board voted to approve the payment for the additional painting as the contract had allowed application of a second coat of paint if needed. A $409.00 grant was received from the Jacksonville Children’s Foundation for the Mrs. Tucker’s display. The checking account held a balance of $17,934.84 on January 31.
COMMITTEE REPORTS:
Administrative: A number of items were brought up for voting early in the meeting while a quorum was present. It was voted to allocate up to $300 for grey and white peel and stick floor tiling for the “safe” storage room; James Pisell said that he could install it. It was voted to authorize David Blanchette to rent a U-Haul truck with a lift for the February 22 moving day and to reimburse him for the rental charges. It was voted to approve rental of a “basic” post office box at the cost of $46 for six months. It was voted to accept into the museum collection the Mayor John R. Davis items, and an assortment of books delivered by Dr. Susan Weller. Samantha Sauer reported that a collection of WWI letters with connections to Jacksonville/Ashland families may be offered to the museum at a later time.
David Blanchette, Samantha Sauer, and James Pisell have been reappointed by Mayor Ezard for another term on the board.
The security system is now operating on cell phone mode. Action on establishing a Wi-Fi connection will be placed on hold until the museum is closer to an opening date. Dave and Jim have been busy cleaning and putting up shelving.
David Blanchette spoke to the Illinois College Museum Studies class, taught by Samantha Sauer, on February 6. The class chose to work on two projects for the museum: a collection survey after the February 22 move to take a basic overview of several boxes for preservation issues and a development of themes that might be covered in displays including a list of challenges that the museum might face.
Electrician Aaron Scott volunteered to survey the Old Post Office building and identify any electrical issues that the museum may need to address before opening. He would draw up an estimate for additional outlets, lighting, etc. to submit for consideration.
David Blanchette reported that the $5000 grant from Landmarks Illinois for window restoration has been re-submitted. The application for the Smithsonian traveling exhibit “Democracy in Action” is still under consideration, and more details have been submitted.
Contractor Gerald Halligan salvaged a nice old mirror and some sinks from another project to use in the restrooms. The Morgan County Historical Society has arranged for the completion of the second restroom.
Collections: Moving date is set for Saturday, February 22. Meet at the Old Post Office building at 9:00 a.m. to receive work assignments. There will be around 6 MacMurray football players to assist with lifting and carrying.
Exhibits: Steve Varble and Laura Marks have a rough draft of the script to be used in the introductory video; it will have a “question and answer” format and use a variety of Jacksonville photographs.
Cindy Boehlke reported that a large print out of the Mrs. Tucker floor image has been produced and will be ready to turn into a jigsaw puzzle once the weather improves and her husband Chad gets into his workshop.
There are volunteers who have offered to assist with building/constructing exhibits once all items have been moved into the Old Post Office and grouped into themes to determine what exhibits will have priority in mounting displays.
The progressive exhibit displayed at Lincoln Land Community College (archeology) needs to be changed out.
Promotion: Steve Varble passed out copies of different styles for logos. It was voted to approve the “round offset” design. David Blanchette will start looking for merchandise ideas (tee shirts, coffee cups, etc.) that would be suitable for the new logo.
Varble also suggested recording and using short podcasts – collecting stories about experiences, people, history, etc. – and releasing them on a regular basis. The State of Illinois has tourism funds available so the museum and the Convention & Visitor’s Bureau might want to work together to apply for a grant.
OLD BUSINESS: None.
NEW BUSINESS: None. There were no public comments.
The next meeting will be held on Wednesday, March 4, 5:15 p.m., in the Mayor’s Conference Room at the Jacksonville Municipal Building. NOTE CHANGE OF DATE.
With no further business or announcements to discuss, the meeting adjourned at 6:37 p.m.
http://cms6.revize.com/revize/jacksonvilleil/city_government/boards_commissions_and_committees/docs/Boards%20Commissions%20Committees/HCC_Minutes/2020/Minutes%202.6.2020.pdf
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