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HomeMy WebLinkAbout8.1 Historic Park Operations Plan G~~~ oF DUB~y ~ 1982 AGENDA STATEMENT i ~ HERITAGE AND CULTURAL ARTS COMMISSION MEETING DATE: Apri18, 2010 SUBJECT: Dublin Historic Park Operations Plan Prepared by Elizabeth Isles, Heritage Center Director ATTACHMENTS: L Kolb House Room Use Diagram 2. Historic Sites - Survey of Operations Hours 3. Historic Park Sign RECOMMENDATION: Recommend to the City Council the preferred method of operation of the Dublin Heritage Center/Dublin Historic Park as well as the preferred name for the site. FINANCIAL STATEMENT: The costs associated with the three options ranges from $0 to $8,520. DESCRIPTION: The 2009-2010 City Council Goals and Objectives contains two high priority objectives related to the Dublin Historic Park: IILB 1 Upon re-location of the Kolb properties to the Dublin Historic Park, complete furnishing of buildings and catalogue/accessioning of the collections of the Kolb family; and III.B 2 Establish facility operations, policies and fees for public use of the Kolb properties at the Dublin Historic Park. Based on the current construction schedule for the Dublin Historic Pazk, Staff anticipates that the new facilities will be open to the public in fall 2010. Consequently, it is necessary to prepare an operations and expenditure plan for the Fiscal Year 2010-2011 Budget. The following report outlines options that consider effective use of Staff resources and strategies to do "more with less" by using trained docents to assist with Heritage Center operations. BACKGROUND: The existing Dublin Heritage Center is located next to the future Dublin Historic Park and consists of the Murray Schoolhouse, Old St. Raymond's Church and the Dublin Pioneer Cemetery. The Murray Schoolhouse Museum is open to the public 18 hours per week as follows: Monday Closed Tuesday 6:00 - 9:00 p.m. Wednesday 1:00 - 4:00 p.m. Thursday 1:00 - 4:00 p.m. Friday 1:00 - 4:00 p.m. Saturday 1:00 - 4:00 p.m. Sunday 1:00 - 4:00 p.m. COPIES TO: ITEM NO: 8.1 GAI[ERITAGE COMMISSION\AGENDA STMTS\2010\4-8-10 DHP Operational Plan.doc The Museum is staffed by the Heritage Center Director Wednesday through Friday and alternating Tuesday evenings and by a part-time Senior Facility Attendant Saturday and Sunday and alternating Tuesday evenings. Additionally the Museum is open by appointment for group tours. The Dublin Historic Park includes the following buildings that were moved from the Kolb Ranch: the Old House; the Main House; the Sunday School Barn; the Hay Barn; and the Pump House. Staff proposes the following uses for each of the buildings. The Old Kolb House will be renovated to serve as a park restroom. In addition, the back section of the building will be used as an Art/Ceramic studio for various types of arts classes. The Main House will serve as a Historic House Museum with a small Gift Shop set up in the back kitchen area. The Living Room and Dining Room will be period rooms containing the collections from the Kolb Family. These rooms will not be physically accessible to the public but will be available for viewing. One of the two downstairs bedrooms will be used as a workspace for cataloging the collections and preparing exhibits. Although all of the items associated with the Kolb House have been inventoried, they must be accessioned in accordance with museum standards. Having a workspace within the Kolb House will save time and reduce the risk of moving objects to another building. The bedroom is the ideal location for the workspace, since it is away from the public view and can be locked when not in use. The other downstairs bedroom will be used as an Archives Room to provide access, storage and workroom space for current and future archives. At the present time, the City archives are being housed in the Murray Schoolhouse in a few different areas. Moving them to the Kolb House in a controlled, lockable room with additional storage will be an ideal scenario. Although it has not yet been finalized, the upstairs bedroom is proposed as a period room of the Kolb Children. Access issues to this room need to still be worked out. Attachment 1 shows the floor plan of the Main House and the proposed uses for each room. The Sunday School Barn will serve as a multi-purpose facility for activities such as visual and performing arts classes, Children's Theatre rehearsals and performances, theatrical productions, poetry readings, tea room functions, wedding receptions and private parties. The Hay Barn will be used to display a number of farm implements and equipment and will also serve as a shade structure for the future Children's Play Area. The Pump House was moved in order to maintain the historic accuracy of the ranch building relationships on the site. Its original function was to supply the ranch buildings with water, however in its current state the building will serve only as an interpretive tool. OPERATIONAL OPTIONS: Staff has prepared three operational options for the combined Dublin Heritage Center/Dublin Historic Park for consideration by the Heritage and Cultural Arts Commission. Option 1- Maintain Current Oaerational Hours / Add Part-Time Staff Under this option, the Historic House Museum in the Main House at the Dublin Historic Park will be accessible to the public during all of the hours that the Dublin Heritage Center is now open (as shown on Page 2 above). In order to facilitate these open hours at both sites, additional part-time staffing is needed. As proposed, one part-time City employee and two trained volunteer docents will be on site during all 2 of 4 public hours to guide visitors and provide excellent customer service. A professionally produced video about the Kolb family and the Historic Park will further enhance visitor experiences. The plan will provide safe operations, security for historical resources and allow the public to experience the new Historic Park and Museum. Option 1 will require the addition of nine hours of part-time staff per week at an annual cost of $8,520. These additional hours will supplement the part-time hours that are currently budgeted for Heritage Center operations. This operational plan will provide one highly-trained part-time Senior Faciliry Attendant to be on site during all operational hours. The Senior Facility Attendant will be responsible for coordinating tours and open visits by the public, overseeing the scheduling and training of docents who will have a presence in both the Murray Schoolhouse and Kolb House and monitoring the arts and theatre classes, private rentals and other activities being conducted in various buildings. Having a part-time Senior Facility Attendant on site during all operational hours will allow the Heritage Center Directar to focus on the overall operations of the facilities, implementation of policy and procedures, program development, Staff and docent trainings and marketing and promotion of the Historic Site. Option 2- Reduce Current Operational Hours Given the economic situation facing the City in the next Fiscal Year, another option to control Staffing costs would be to reduce the hours of operation for Dublin Heritage Center/Dublin Historic Park. As mentioned, the Heritage Center is currently open to the public 18 hours per week. In surveying other museum operations in the region, Staff has learned that there is a broad range of open hours for facilities, ranging from 32.5 hours per week to three hours per month (see Attachment 2). In the Tri-Valley area, open hours for museums include: • Eugene O'Neill House Museum (Danville) = 12.5 hours per week • Museum on Main (Pleasanton) = 8 hours per week • Forest Homes Farms (San Ramon) = 4 hours per month • Ravenswood (Livermore) = 5.5 hours per month • Glass House (San Ramon) = 4 hours per month (opening in May 2010) Under Option 2, operational hours would be reduced to nine hours per week and the facilities would be open as follows: Tuesday 6:00 - 9:00 p.m. Friday 1:00 - 4:00 p.m. Sunday 1:00 - 4:00 p.m. The existing budget for Heritage Center operations provides for part-time staff for nine hours per week so there will be no additional impact on part-time staff costs. It should be noted that activities scheduled on non-open hours, such as school and group tours, weddings and private parties will not be affected by the reduction in hours, since these activities are already accounted for in the existing budget for Heritage Center operations. However, an additional 72 hours of part-time staff would still be needed to account for additional arts and theater classes at the new facilities at an annual cost of $890. Option 3- Maintain Current Operational Hours with Current Stafrine Levels The final option to be considered is to keep the current level of staffing and maintain the hours of operation, even with the addition of the Kolb Buildings at the Dublin Historic Park. Under this option, the Heritage Center Director will staff both the Murray Schoolhouse and the Historic House Museum in 3 of 4 the Main House at the Dublin Historic Park Wednesday through Friday and alternating Tuesday evenings; and a part-time Seniar Facility Attendant will staff the weekend hours and alternating Tuesday evenings. Although not an ideal situation, Staff will need to rely heavily on the use of trained volunteer docents to assist with operations and make due until better economic times provide an opportunity to expand on the staffing needs. This additional demand on the Heritage Center Director's time will result in a delay in implementing the continuation of the Oral History Program, proceeding with Phase III of the Museum Assessment Program and in actively marketing the Dublin Historic Park buildings for public use. DUBLIN HERITAGE CENTER / DUBLIN HISTORIC PARK NAME: With the addition of the Dublin Historic Park and Kolb Buildings to the existing Dublin Heritage Center, it is recommended that the two sites be unified with one name. The name will need to capture or reflect upon the following amenities and programs: • Historic Buildings including Schoolhouse, Homes and Barns • Church (listed on the National Register of Historic Places) • Two Museums • Performing Arts Venue • Pioneer and Active Cemetery • Gardens / Picnic Areas / Walkways • An ever-changing calendar of events, exhibitions, plays, concerts and classes - all in a beautiful and timeless setting. In the past few months Staff has solicited "suggestion forms" from a number of Dublin stakeholders, including members of the Dublin Historical Preservation Association (DHPA), members of the Dublin/San Ramon Women's Club, volunteer docents, and attendees at the St. Patrick's Day Tea Room. Of the names submitted for consideration, the most popular names include: DUBLIN GREEN Heritage Museums & Cultural Center TAE MUSEUMS AT DUBLIN HISTORIC PARK DUBLIN HISTORIC PARK AND MUSEUMS DUBLIN SQUARE Museums o Park o Cemetery o Heritage Center DUBLIN GREEN Heritage & Cultural Center The name will be prominently featured on a concrete rectangular sign approximately 13 feet long which will be fabricated and installed as part of the Historic Park, Phase I project (see Attachment 3). RECOMMENDATION: Staff recommends that the Heritage and Cultural Arts Commission receive the report and recommend to the City Council the preferred method of operation of the Dublin Heritage Center/Dublin Historic Park as well as the preferred name for the site. 4 of 4