Museums work to deal with recession

The Times Union featured the following article about how local cultural organizations are being impacted by the recession and working to respond.

The Rensselaer County Historical Society is running monthly operating deficits of $20,000, fueled in part by the $6,000 utility bill it has to spend to preserve its collections.

With the downtown cultural icon staring at closing, Rachel Tooker, the society's transition executive, doesn't intend to blink when it comes to finding a way out of the financial quicksand.

The historical society survived the first quarter only after supporters paid pledges early and the group found extra cash to keep its museum operating, Tooker said.

"We're back in the soup for May. We're looking at all alternatives,'' Tooker said.

Museums around the state face similar struggles as the recession grinds up their budgets, said Anne Ackerson, director of the Museum Association of New York.

"They're struggling,'' Ackerson said about the association's 250 member institutions. "Every revenue stream is being nibbled at. There's nothing sacred at all.''

Budget cuts of 10 percent to 30 percent are common, Ackerson said. With the spending reductions come staff cuts.

Museums that expanded their facilities in the last decade often have the most difficult financial times. But because of the depth of the recession, "everybody is vulnerable to a lesser or greater degree,'' Ackerson said.

The first change at the historical society is developing a business plan, including finding new funding sources, as a way out of its fiscal condition. Tooker was the chief operating officer for the Ohio Historical Society before coming to Troy. At RCHS, Tooker said she changed the title from executive director to interim executive so there would be no ego issues if the society must merge.

The article also examines the state of the Albany Institute of History & Art. Read more here.