by Kirk Ross
Staff Writer
Chapel Hill — After rehashing the budget discussion that precipitated the closure of the Chapel Hill Museum, the town council this week debated – and sparred at times – over the fate of the town-owned building that housed it.
Failing to get what it felt was adequate support from the town, the museum’s board of directors decided last June to shut down after 14 years in operation. An auction of some of its collection was held last week.
At Monday night’s meeting at Town Hall, the council received a report and budget request for the town’s former library building at 523 E. Franklin St. The town takes over the property this week and has already budgeted about $11,000 for improvements to the building.
Following the museum’s decision, Town Manager Roger Stancil initiated a review of potential cultural and arts programs that could be housed at the building. Stancil asked the council to approve initial plans for use of the building as a cultural-arts and community-meeting space and for the town’s Public Arts Commission to take the lead in developing a long-term plan for the space. Utility bills, maintenance, basic staffing and other costs were estimated at $95,000 through the end of the fiscal year.
Parks and Recreation director Butch Kisiah told council members that there would need to be a considerable amount of work to get the building in shape for public use. Kisiah said the town would attempt to develop partnerships with the university and the Chapel Hill Historical Society, which rents space in the building’s basement.
Council member Matt Czajkowski said he was taken aback by the cost to the town and said taxpayers are seeing the consequences of the failure to strike a deal with the museum board. He said he was also concerned about the rush to use the space primarily for cultural purposes and asked that the council “step back†and launch a more thorough review to find the best use for the facility.
Several council members defended their decision to offer temporary help to the museum while a new performance agreement was drafted – a move the museum board rejected.
Council member Penny Rich said she did not think the museum had a good business plan. Rich said regardless of what happened, the town has to move forward.
“My biggest concern is that we maintain the building,†she said.
Stancil said the town could eliminate some program costs but that it would take about $75,000 through the end of the fiscal year next June to keep the building in shape for use by the public.
Czajkowski said it would be prudent for the town not to try to open the building, but to just budget enough “to keep the lights on†while soliciting input on what to do with it.
That brought a strong objection from Mayor Mark Kleinschmidt, who said that the building was paid for by the public with the expectation that it be used for community purposes, and the prudent thing to do would be to get it ready for public use as soon as possible.
Kleinschmidt said the plans being discussed are temporary and the council will likely hold a full review of uses during next year’s budget discussions.
“This is not about a 20-year plan. This is about getting the building ready for use by the people of Chapel Hill,†Kleinschmidt said. “A ‘keeping-the-lights-on approach’ is irresponsible.â€
After the discussion, the council authorized adding $75,000 for the building budget by a vote of 6-2, with council members Czajkowski and Laurin Easthom voting against the proposal.
In other action Monday night the council:
• approved new bicycle-facility requirements for new developments, including the requirement that multi-family developments provide at least one bicycle parking spot for every four units;
• accepted a $75,000 National Recreation Trails grant to replace the Battle Branch Trail’s main pedestrian bridge near Glendale Drive and Sandy Creek Trail; and
• accepted a grant to begin work on Morgan Creek Trail, which is designed to be a 10-foot-wide concrete trail that will allow pedestrian and bicycle traffic to continue from the current terminus of the Fan Branch Trail at Culbreth Road, west to the Carrboro town line near Frank Porter Graham School.