Museum Restructuring Committee

Norwalk Museum Restructuring Committee Minutes of Meeting/Tuesday, May 29, 2012 Attendance: Mary Roman; David Westmoreland, co-chair; Judith Bacal; Mary Alice-Fitzgerald; David Park, acting secretary; James Clark; Charlie Yost; Jim Brown. David Westmoreland called the meeting to order at 5:34 PM. David Park moved to approve the minutes of May 15, 2012. Motion APPROVED with the correction of the word “she” to “he” on page four. David Park moved to approve the minutes of May 22, 2012. Motion APPROVED. James Clark abstained. David Westmoreland began a discussion on the site visits by the committee. The committee will work with Judith Bacal and David Westmoreland on documenting the particulars of each city building for possible use for collections, exhibits, archives and storage. It was advised that committee members send their comments on documenting the site visits to either Judith Bacal or David Westmoreland to be incorporated on to a table for committee records. Jim Brown will compose a draft proposal from the Norwalk Public Library on managing and housing the archives including approximate budget numbers. Jim Brown discussed methods of cataloging the archives including “Cat Express.” The archives may take years to catalog by volunteers and qualified staff and will be available to the State. Committee members discussed the notion that the Lockwood House may be too small for the current collections. David Park commented that the archives for public research may be housed at the Norwalk Public Library and several people consider the house owned by the city at Fodor Farm may be appropriate for the Dunn Hardware store exhibit which will cut down on the space needed at the Lockwood House. David Westmoreland will contact Mike Mocciae (director of Rec & Parks) regarding Fodor Farm and a possible site visit. James Clark began a discussion on management structure issues to oversee collections such as a non-profit organization. This issue is a future step. The committee discussed the use of the Norwalk Museum in the near term for storage. Charlie Yost commented on the possibility of using available commercial space very cheaply for the Norwalk Museum. Jim Brown commented that it may be best to utilize city owned buildings to save money. The Museum Committee will meet again on Tuesday, June 12. The meeting adjourned at 6:05 PM. Respectfully Submitted, David W. Park acting secretary