City approves partnership with museum and art gallery

At their February regular meeting, Kawartha Lakes Council approved two separate partnership agreements between the city and the Kawartha Art Gallery and the city and the Kawartha Lakes Museum and Archives.

These partnerships are seen as beneficial for both the municipality and the two cultural organizations as they formalize the city’s support of these groups and codify what the city can expect back from the museum and gallery in terms of corporate governance and accountability.

Chief Administrative Officer Ron Taylor told council that the formalization of partnership agreements with a handful of community organizations is a direction the city is taking predominantly where there is ongoing funding or in-kind support being provided by the city to the group over a number of years.

“Council funds hundreds of community groups with one-time only grants,” Taylor said. “The ones we are developing more formal relationships with are the ones that are delivering a community function or services as well.”

Taylor said that both the museum and art gallery provide a core function for Kawartha Lakes by running a community-based museum and art gallery. He noted that both groups approached the city looking for ongoing funding to support their operations.

Both the gallery and the museum leaders hoped that the city would provide them funding over multiple years rather than just a one-time grant, and that this financial support would allow both groups to become eligible for additional provincial and federal art and culture grants.

Taylor said that as part of the partnership agreements the city would be spelling out its expectations for services and how the organizations would report back to council so there is public accountability for the funds that are being provided.

In additional documentation provided to council, the gallery is currently being provided with $200,000 a year in city funding through to the end of the 2025 budget year, while the museum is receiving $125,000 a year in city funding for the same time period.

Taylor said that “council will revisit these agreements (once signed) with each new term of council.”

Upon conclusion of his overview, Taylor recommended council support and approval for both partnership agreements.

Councillor Dan Joyce was very positive about the formalization of the two partnership agreements, sharing how the museum and gallery have already benefited from more stable funding.

“Our funding to the museum and gallery has put both groups at a different level allowing them to obtain better and larger grants from the provincial and federal government,” Joyce said. “This has created a positive snowball effect.”

Joyce added that both facilities are economic drivers for the city and that money spent by the municipality in assisting their operations is a “good return on investment.”

Councillor Pat Warren was also in favour of the partnership agreements as they simply formalize a situation that already exists, particularly with the KLMA.

“(A partnership agreement) makes sense,” Warren said. “We own the building (the museum operates out of) so we have some kind of partnership with them (already) because we are liable for the building.”

Councillor Tracy Richardson agreed, saying that both the museum and gallery are “growing in a positive way.”