Naper Settlement Museum Board

City of Naperville 400 S. Eagle Street Naperville, IL 60540 Meeting Minutes - Final Friday, September 22, 2023 8:00 AM NEU Naper Settlement Museum Board Naper Settlement Museum Board Meeting Minutes - Final September 22, 2023 A. CALL TO ORDER: Mayor Scott Wehrli called the meeting to order at 8:00am and entertained a motion to bring Erik Long into the meeting via teleconferencing as he was out of town on business. Mayor Wehrli addressed the new meeting format. All boards and commissions follow the open meetings act requirements, as such the lobby and conference room doors will remain open and accessible to the public. Every meeting will have the names and titles of all participants so the public can identify them, and a designated seating area for public will be available. Motion by Al Zucco, seconded by Councilman Josh McBroom. Motion passed with 7 Aye and 1 Abstain A motion was made approved. The motion carried by the following vote: Aye: 7- McBroom, Meyer-Smith, Quillinan, Schremser, Tang, Wehrli, and Zucco Abstain: 1- Long B. ROLL CALL: Staff Attendees - Macarena Tamayo-Calabrese, President & CEO; Harriet M. Pistorio, Chief Operating Officer; Donna Sack, Vice President & Chief Program Office; Alexandra A. Atkinson, Director of Finance; Diane Fornek, Administrative Specialist Also, Present - Rachel Mayer-Finance Director/City Treasurer; Marcie Schatz Assistant to the City Manager Present 7- Erik Long, Josh McBroom, Leanne Meyer-Smith, Lee Quillinan, Julie Schremser, Alan Tang, and Scott Wehrli C. PUBLIC FORUM: No comments in Public Forum D. OLD BUSINESS: City of Naperville Page 1 Printed on 3/26/2024 Naper Settlement Museum Board Meeting Minutes - Final September 22, 2023 Receive an update on Naper Nights Naper Nights update was presented by Pistorio. Naper Settlement had approximately 19,000 attendees over the six Naper Nights dates. Taylor Swift/Dixie Chicks being the most successful with approximately 6,300 in attendance. Naper Settlement revenues over the six-night period came in at approximately $371K. Staff did a great job. They were professional and managed to get everyone in by 6:00pm for the start of the Taylor Swift/Dixie Chicks concert. At a prior concert, the Naperville Police Department directed staff to evacuate due to significant storms headed in our direction, staff cleared the grounds within 20 minutes and headed for the nearest basement to wait out the storm. Mayor Wehrli asked if the same bands are booked for next year. Pistorio indicated that the event staff is currently working on the line-up for next year and they usually change year to year. Receive update on Unvarnished Attachments: Unvanrished Website Analytics Template Sack updated the board on the Unvarnished project. Sack informed the board that she and Jeanne Schultz-Angel attended the national conference of the American Association of State and Local History Museums and received their most prestigious award in recognition of that project. Sack also referenced information in the NSMB board packet on the analytics of the project as well as the substantial growth for the Unvarnished website. The impact is larger than the numbers on the report, given that what may appear as “one hit/participant” is often an entire classroom (typically 20-30 plus students). The other data presented in the packet reflects the participation of the onsite exhibit which ran from June through October and had approximately 5,800 in person visitors. This online exhibit was so successful that a travel exhibit has been developed allowing Unvarnished to gain greater impact and reach in Illinois. E. NEW BUSINESS: City of Naperville Page 2 Printed on 3/26/2024 Naper Settlement Museum Board Meeting Minutes - Final September 22, 2023 Receive and Approve 2024 Budget/CIP Attachments: NS 2024 Operating Packet The Naper Settlement operating plan for fiscal year 2024 proposed budget is $5,189,251 which reflects a 24% increase over last year according to Pistorio. Contributions to increases in revenue for next year would include additional programing for the Mary & Richard Agricultural Center STEM lab, a Fair Farm Market, which is a combination of a Farmers Market utilizing Fair Trade, along with increased revenue opportunity with the Birck Family Innovation Gateway building. The building will be done by mid-December and available for rent by March of next year. Naper Settlement anticipates a $40,000 increase in revenue by renting this building for weddings, conferences, and birthday parties. School Services are also back with an expected increase in revenue of approximately $166K which is significantly over budget. Pistorio also pointed out other expenses reflected in the budget, including three new full-time positions: A Grant Specialist, an IT Specialist, and Preservation Specialist. Naper Settlement has approximately 15 active grants that require diligent administration to meet grant requirements along with outstanding grant opportunities that have yet to be explored. The IT Specialist position is necessary to help meet the growing digitization demands. The Preservation Specialist will focus on the historical homes and structures on site to help address issues early before they become an expensive line item on the deferred maintenance report. Other expenses include a new cleaning contract for $42K which is up for bid again. There is also approximately $13.4K for the upcoming celebration of the 150th anniversary of the Naperville Fire Department. There is $35K for an update on Naper Settlements closed network. Also, Naper Settlement is currently researching other possible cultural events to bring to the grounds along with researching the bus tour industry. Both ventures would require significant research and development and are budgeted at $92K. Fifty thousand ($50K) allocated to experts in master planning. The last master plan for NS was done in the 1980’s and a new plan is long overdue. Deferred maintenance accounts for an additional $139K that Naper Settlement would like to tackle in 2024. Quillinan requested information regarding the snow removal expense. Pistorio explained that NS has a company that assists with snow removal of over two inches. Anything below that is removed by NS staff. Mayor Wehrli asked why the city does not provide snow removal. Rachel Meyer explained that there are so many streets to try to clear that even the city leverages other companies to assist with side streets and cul-de-sacs. Given the tight stretch, NS would not be a city priority. City of Naperville Page 3 Printed on 3/26/2024 Naper Settlement Museum Board Meeting Minutes - Final September 22, 2023 CIPs are part of the packet and contain the fiber optics plan to bring modern technology to the site. The current fiber optics was put in decades ago. Conversations with Doug Keiger, and Jackie Nguyn, IT Director have determined that City IT is over-stretched and lacks field expertise to support NS needs. Naper Settlement received a quote for $632K for a closed network. According to Tamayo-Calabrese the total cost for said project is $2M+. The museum has sought federal dollars and expects to receive approximately $800K when the federal budget is approved. Mayor Wehrli asked what would happen if the $800K federal funding does not go through? Tamayo-Calabrese said a similar request would go in for the following year and new strategies would be developed with the federal lobbyist. Mayor Wehrli asked if the city approved the IT position would there be an offset for the city? Rachel Meyer explained that it would not because there is a gap in expertise on the city side. The Mayor asked what is the impact on Naper Settlement without this funding? Per Pistorio, it would impact the need for field-appropriate exhibit cases, the 150-year fire department celebration, the loss of income from the Fair Farm market,and result in a reduction in the number of grants applied for in the future. All resulting in a decrease in revenue potential. Tamayo-Calabrese assured the Mayor that Naper Settlement is committed to doing its part to increase impact and revenue. Rachel Meyer then asked how the RND $92K figure was built. Pistorio said that it is a projection based on travel expenses along with consultant costs and other potential needs. Donna Sack reminded the board that Naper Settlement is only a few short years from reaccreditation. The accreditation committee assigned to NS will be looking at the funding and technology with great scrutiny as both are factors in reaccreditation. Mayor Wehrli requested a motion and vote to approve the budget. Councilman Josh McBroom said he voted present/abstained because he is new to both Council and NSMB and has seen only the first of the four budget workshops and prefers to wait to see final numbers. Votes: Councilman McBroom Votes present/abstain. Leanne Meyer-Smith votes YES Erik Long votes YES Julie Schremser votes YES Alan Tang votes YES Lee Quillinan votes YES Al Zucco votes YES Mayor Scott Wehrli votes NO City of Naperville Page 4 Printed on 3/26/2024 Naper Settlement Museum Board Meeting Minutes - Final September 22, 2023 Motion to approve with 6 Yes, 1 no and 1 present/abstain A motion was made approved. The motion carried by the following vote: Aye: 6- Long, Meyer-Smith, Quillinan, Schremser, Tang, and Zucco Nay: 1- Wehrli Abstain: 1- McBroom F. REPORTS: Receive and Approve the minutes from the August 25, 2023 NSMB board meeting Attachments: 8.25.23 NSMB Legistar minutes Al Zucco called attention to the approved minutes from the last NSMB board meeting asking that the record reflect that the vote from the last meeting should be 6-0 along with a 6-0 vote for the financials. Mayor Wehrli requested a motion to approve the minutes with the changes indicated. Motion approved by Al Zucco and seconded by Lee Quillinan. Motion carries 8-0 A motion was made approved. The motion carried by the following vote: Aye: 8- Long, McBroom, Meyer-Smith, Quillinan, Schremser, Tang, Wehrli, and Zucco City of Naperville Page 5 Printed on 3/26/2024 Naper Settlement Museum Board Meeting Minutes - Final September 22, 2023 Receive and Approve the Naper Settlement financial reports as of July 2023 Attachments: NS Notes for month ending July 31, 2023 NS Operating P&L 2 07. NS 2023 projections as of July 31 through December Alexandra Atkinson discussed the Naper Settlement financials through July 31, 2023. The operating revenue through July is $354,068 for Naper Settlement which is approximately 95% of the operating revenue goal for the year. School Services has exceeded the yearly revenue goal by over $14K. The annual public programming revenue budget is over $16,658. Overall Naper Settlement’s budget is over by $4,000 even with the loss of Naper Pride and Witches Night Out. On the expense side, Naper Settlement is at 51% of the yearly budget. Naper Settlement has filled two vacancies. The Event Specialist and Digital Archivist positions have been filled. The Archivist begins November 1st. Naper Settlement has anticipated savings of approximately $20K for utilities due to the dropping rates for gas this year. Mayor Wehrli asked for a motion to approve NS financial reports. Motion made by Lee Quillian and seconded by Al Zucco. Motion carries 8-0 A motion was made approved. The motion carried by the following vote: Aye: 8- Long, McBroom, Meyer-Smith, Quillinan, Schremser, Tang, Wehrli, and Zucco City of Naperville Page 6 Printed on 3/26/2024 Naper Settlement Museum Board Meeting Minutes - Final September 22, 2023 Receive an update on Naper Settlement’s new buildings The Richard & Mary Benck Agriculture Center building has been rented for several events. Currently, $250K of the DCEO grant is available to fund the exhibit space. An additional $250K will be used to revitalize and incorporate the playscape located outside the Ag Center. The Ag center STEM program which is supported by the Illinois Soybean Association will allow 2,500 students to attend, 1,000 have already gone through the program. The grantor has requested that Naper Settlement reapply for funding again for next year. This will allow 5,000 students to attend the STEM program at the Ag Center in two years. Mayor Wehrli has asked if Naper Settlement has reached out to the Illinois Farm Bureau for grant opportunities and indicated he has a contact there that may be useful. The Birck Family Innovation Gateway building is on schedule. The stone is going on the façade, the numbers have been added to the building and the west wall floor to ceiling windows have been installed. The installation of the HVAC system is expected to be completed by the end of November. Naper Settlement is currently working with Cortina, a state-of-the-art digital experience company, to develop an introductory video. Once approval of the liquor license is complete, Naper Settlement can begin rentals for this location. Mayor Wehrli has requested a meeting to discuss the liquor license approval process with the executive staff at Naper Settlement. Receive CY23 Attendance Demographic Tracking report for August Attachments: CY23 Attendance Demographic Tracking for Aug The attendance reports indicate that Naper Settlement attendance is currently at 76,931 of the projected of 94,545 in 2023. Naper Settlement expects to meet or to exceed this number through the end of the year G. ADJOURNMENT: Mayor Wehrli asked for a motion to adjourn at 9:10am. Motion approved by Al Zucco, seconded by Leanne Meyer-Smith. Motion carries 8-0. A motion was made approved. The motion carried by the following vote: Aye: 8- Long, McBroom, Meyer-Smith, Quillinan, Schremser, Tang, Wehrli, and Zucco City of Naperville Page 7 Printed on 3/26/2024 Naper Settlement Museum Board Meeting Minutes - Final September 22, 2023 Minutes respectfully submitted by: /S/ Diane Fornek Administrative Specialist City of Naperville Page 8 Printed on 3/26/2024