Cowtown Museum in Wichita, KS in trouble

[Davey Ray]

The Cowtown Museum in Wichita, KS is in financial trouble and may be forced to close.  See my post in the "Kansas" CAS City forum for details.

[Camille Eonich]

http://www.cascity.com/forumhall/index.php/topic,10894.0.html

[Davey Ray]

This was part of an e-mail I received about the Cowtown Museum in Wichita.  I also posted it as an update over there in the Kansas forum...


[copy of email received 9/27/06]

As you are already aware through news reports, personal visits and phone calls  Old Cowtown Museum has been under attack [sorry for the hyperbole but there's no better way to describe the situation] by County and City officials since April of this year. They have presented a 10% of annual budget shortfall as a crisis rather than as a cash flow problem. When, through a two week long fund raising effort Cowtown reduced that shortfall to a projected $10,000 year end debt, they moved the goal posts so that we need $1 million or they would recommend withholding govt. support for '07.

Well, apparently we weren't collapsing soon enough for these officials so they detailed EPA, OSHA, City Inspector, Water Department, Health Department and Animal Control to come out and look for code violations. The reports were presented to our Assistant [and Acting] Director this morning. As you can imagine they found a number of problems in an under funded, not for profit, 56 year old facility on 25 acres of prime riverfront property just blocks from downtown.

While some of their 'violations' are laughable [chicken coop needs smoke detector] most will require major capital investment. We are prohibited at this point from doing any repairs and from disposing of any waste materials as they may be 'hazardous materials'. All repairs must be done under a 'city plan' requiring 'city permits'.

I'm not crying 'wolf'. These are legally binding findings with the power to shut the Museum permanently. The report's cover letter from City Manager George Kolb clearly states that unless the issues are met, the corporation Historic Wichita/Sedgwick Inc. d.b.a. Old Cowtown Museum  is in violation of the lease agreement with the city and they can void the remaining 44 years of the lease. There is obviously something more going on than meets the eye.
A good outside investigative reporter would be helpful.

Please help us get the message out to any and all you think can assist.
While we are in need of funds, we also need public pressure applied to elected officials whose e-mail addresses follow. Please also contact Beccy Tanner our local History reporter at btanner@wichitaeagle.com .

Send email to:
lburtnet@sedgwick.gov
wbuchana@sedgwick.gov
sfearey@wichita.gov
dunruh@sedgwick.gov
tnorton@sedgwick.gov
twinters@sedgwick.gov
bsciorti@sedgwick.gov
Cbrewer@wichita.gov
Sschlapp@wichita.gov
Jskelton@wichita.gov
PGray@wichita.gov
BMartz@wichita.gov
CMayans@wichita.gov