Wheaton council members reject museum's plea

More than a dozen supporters of Wheaton's Center for History rallied outside city hall on Monday night, demanding a decision on whether public funding for the museum should be restored.

When they got an answer a few hours later, it wasn't what they wanted to hear.

A majority of the city council four members said they are flatly opposed to resurrecting a contract with the center. And unless circumstances change, they don't expect the financially struggling not-for-profit to receive taxpayer money anytime soon.

“The city of Wheaton cannot be in the position of funding a bankrupt organization,” Councilman Phil Suess said. “To continue doing what we have done in the past would be a mistake that would result in just the wasting of valuable city resources.”

Center officials have been hoping the city council would reinstate an agreement that paid the center $225,000 annually to preserve and promote local history. When the previous agreement was terminated by the council in April 2009, the center lost about half of its operating budget.

Now the museum is in debt and struggling to keep open its locations at 315 W. Front St. and 606 N. Main St. While some money has been raised to help pay rent, CEO Alberta Adamson, the center's last remaining paid staff member, hasn't received a paycheck since April.

“If we lose the center, we have lost a great, valuable asset to the city of Wheaton,” said Bill Schultz, who serves on the Center for History's board of directors. “And once it's gone, it won't be coming back.”

Adamson agreed, saying: “I'm truly afraid that Wheaton's history is going to be lost.”

Councilman Howard Levine, however, said there's simply isn't enough money in Wheaton's budget to reinstate the contract with the center. He also doesn't expect the city's financial situation to improve next year.

“Saving the Center for History is not the responsibility of the city,” Levine said.

Center supporters disagree. They say there's approximately 45,000 historic objects that would need to be maintained if the center closes.

“The city council has a responsibility to preserve its history,” Adamson said. “How are they going to do that? They say they don't have an answer.”

Suess said he believes the city would be willing to work with the Center for History sometime in the future. But that would require the center to develop “a different plan, a different approach, with different management.”

In the meantime, Councilman Liz Corry said the center's board will need to redefine what they want the museum to become “and how they're going to do it without the city's money.”