History Center Will Vacate Historic Carnegie Building

TC Ticker - Traverse City Business Magazine - 15 October 2014

by Beth Milligan

History Center of Traverse City board members voted unanimously last night to terminate the organization's lease with the city and vacate the city-owned Carnegie Building in 30 days – leaving management of the building and the 10,000-artifact Con Foster collection in the city's hands -- and the building's future wide open.


The History Center will provide its required 30 days' notice to city staff today (Wednesday), giving the organization until November 15 to vacate the premises. Board members warned city officials earlier this year the nonprofit was unable to keep up with the $100,000 annual cost to maintain the 110-year-old Carnegie Building and would need to terminate the lease agreement unless the city provided financial help.

City commissioners agreed in September to pay up to $10,000 through the end of the year to assist with utilities and other costs. But History Center board members tell The Ticker the gesture was too little, too late and that the nonprofit is in danger of going bankrupt if it remains in the building through December.

“The subsidy doesn't help with much of anything,” says board member John Di Giacomo. “We're out of money. We've spent millions in this spot, and it's unfortunate we have to walk away from it...but it's better for us to leave now while we're still solvent.”

Acting Executive Director Maddie Buteyn says the History Center is in the final stages of discussions with another local property owner to secure a new home, noting the property is in “an area that's fitting for us” and will allow the organization to “bring history to the community instead of making the community come to us.”

“I don't want people to misunderstand – we're not using (the lease termination) as a threat,” says Buteyn. “We have to think of our nonprofit, our members and our own collection of archives. The Carnegie Building and the Con Foster collection belong to the city. We've tried to take care of it for them for 13 years, and we can't do it anymore.”

In June, the History Center approached the city about paying $124,000 annually to continue maintaining the building and collection. An ad hoc committee of the city commission is now studying that and other proposals for the future of the Carnegie Building. Buteyn says it's “frustrating” the commission has not yet denied or accepted their proposal in light of the organization's financial distress.

“It's not a matter of us making money off the city,” she says. “They're paying us for services rendered.”

With the History Center's proposal to the city still technically on the table, Di Giacomo says the board “would have to consider it” if the city came back to ask that they continue to maintain the Con Foster collection and/or remain in the Carnegie Building. Otherwise, Di Giacomo says the organization's targeted new home is a “positive step” that would allow the group to continue providing “all the services and programming we currently do, if not more.”

The History Center's departure from the Carnegie Building could also set the table for ArtCenter Traverse City to move in; the organization, which recently announced a merger with Crooked Tree Arts Center of Petoskey, also has a proposal on the table for use of the building.

From the TC Record Eagle - Committee recommends funding History Center

Committee recommends funding History Center

By BRIAN McGILLIVARY bmcgillivary@record-eagle.com | 

Posted: Friday, September 12, 2014 2:12 pm

Committee recommends funding History Center

The History Center of Traverse City could receive a taxpayer subsidy to help manage the city-owned Carnegie Building shown above.

TRAVERSE CITY — City commissioners will consider an initial $12,250 subsidy to maintain the Carnegie Building for the History Center of Traverse City and several other organizations that rely on the 110-year-old structure.

The History Center has an agreement to manage the city-owned building on Sixth Street and the more than 10,000 artifacts in the city's Con Foster Collection, but can't afford to maintain the building. Center officials notified the city commission it will give 30 days notice to end the agreement and vacate the building unless they receive financial help to cover costs such as utilities.

"We would prefer to be in the building and we have made significant investments in the building," said Steve Morris, board treasurer for the History Center. "But the History Center needs to protect itself. It does not want to default on its financial obligations."

Commissioners meet Monday at 7 p.m. in the Governmental Center to consider a recommendation from a committee of Commissioners Jeanine Easterday, Ross Richardson, and Gary Howe to fund direct building costs through Dec. 31.

Laurie Gabel, immediate past president of the American Association of University Women, told commissioners at their Friday committee meeting their decision will affect more than just the History Center. The American Association of University Women is among four nonprofits that rent office space from the History Center and face possible eviction should the History Center cancel the agreement with the city.

"The History Center has worked hard to make it a very viable, active building for a lot of users," Gabel said. "We struggle with why the city ... which owns the Carnegie Building, feels no sense to support it financially."

The Central Neighborhood Association also uses the building for meetings, and the city uses half the building for elections. The closure also would impact planned holiday exhibits such as the annual Festival of Trains and the rental of meeting rooms by other community groups.

City Manager Jered Ottenwess said it would be simpler and more straightforward to subsidize the History Center through the end of the year than take over building operations. He determined the minimum direct cost of the building at about $49,000 and recommended a direct payment of $12,250. He said the cost of the subsidy would be similar to what the city would pay to directly maintain the building.

The proposed payment amount will be based on actual utility costs and could increase, depending on weather conditions.

Morris called commissioners' recommendation "a good first step."

"Is it enough to cover all of the investment we've put into that building over the last two years — no," he said. "But is it enough to allow us to continue operating through the end of the year — yes."

The committee will meet every other week while it sorts out a long-term plan for the building's use and management. Commissioners hope to provide an initial recommendation to the full commission by mid-November.

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