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Council Member Menin proposes using NYC & Company funding to support Brooklyn Museum
0:21:47
ยท
3 min
Council Member Julie Menin suggests using funds from NYC & Company (renamed Visitors and Conventions Bureau) to launch a targeted campaign supporting the Brooklyn Museum. Commissioner Laurie Cumbo agrees to explore this idea as a potential solution to boost visitorship and revenue for the museum, though noting that the funds couldn't be directly allocated to staffing.
- Menin highlights $20 million in city funding going to NYC & Company that could be utilized for a robust campaign.
- The discussion emphasizes the urgency of implementing this solution before considering layoffs.
- Both parties agree this could be a valuable tool to address the museum's financial challenges, though with some limitations on direct fund allocation.
Julie Menin
0:21:47
Great.
0:21:48
Thank you so much, chair, and good to see you, commissioner.
0:21:51
So I I do have a a very specific question.
0:21:54
So NYC And Company, which has now been renamed the Visitors and Conventions Bureau, I used to serve on the executive board of NYC and Co when I was commissioner of media and entertainment.
0:22:04
Right now, the city of New York is spending $20,000,000 in in budget that they are giving.
0:22:10
$20,000,000 of city money is going to NYC and Co.
0:22:14
What are you all doing to collaborate with them?
0:22:16
Because you say, you know, tourism is down, but you've got a crisis now at the Brooklyn Museum, and it seems to me you could be utilizing some of that funding to do a really targeted campaign to support the Brooklyn Museum utilizing I mean, there are 18 different international offices that NYC and Company runs.
0:22:36
They also do programs to get New Yorkers to go to different venues.
0:22:40
So, I mean, if some of that funding was designated for a really robust campaign to boost visitors to the museum Mhmm.
0:22:50
It seems like that would be something that should be tried first.
Laurie Cumbo
0:22:54
Well, I think that's what this hearing is all about, solutions, and you're coming up with a good one.
0:22:58
We need to further explore that.
0:23:01
We could definitely, have those conversations.
0:23:04
Would love for you to be a part of them, so that we can see what we can do, to have a more robust tourism program promoting the Brooklyn Museum and other institutions.
0:23:15
I'm not sure what they are doing in that sense in terms of how much it's specifically targeted to the Brooklyn Museum.
0:23:22
We would have to find that out.
0:23:23
But I feel like that's another great solution in terms of, maybe more targeted, specifically to the museum during this really particularly challenging time could be helpful.
0:23:34
I don't know how it's going to help us in the immediate, but I think in the long term we have to find solutions and I think that that would be a great one.
Julie Menin
0:23:41
Well, would just suggest respectfully that like immediately that this be done because those funds are there and that we've used them in the past for these kinds of, not this particular situation, but other similar situations where you have cultural organizations or venues that are really struggling and we could do like a rapid infusion of funds to help to support that institution.
0:24:06
So I would obviously hold off on any draconian measure like layoffs, which we absolutely shouldn't be doing for this institution.
Laurie Cumbo
0:24:14
Let me ask you Councilmember Menon in that way.
0:24:17
You're saying more so for marketing to increase, visitorship at the museum.
Julie Menin
0:24:23
Correct.
0:24:24
Because I mean, you were saying that tourism is down, that the museum is struggling, that it can't support these additional staff members.
0:24:31
But before taking any kind of I mean, just to be clear, I totally oppose these kinds of layoffs.
0:24:38
So before going down that draconian path, why wouldn't we use every tool in our toolbox?
0:24:43
We have an amazing tool in our toolbox, which is we have this visitors and conventions bureau.
0:24:47
It has significant city funds.
0:24:49
Let's hold off on any kind of layoffs and let's try this first and really try to boost the museum and visitorship which would obviously boost its overall revenues.
Laurie Cumbo
0:25:00
We would certainly look into it, sounds like a wonderful idea.
0:25:04
I guess the challenge that I would experience with that is that those funds couldn't be directly allocated to the museum, but it could be utilized, I would suspect, to boost fundraising and tourism and visitorship to the museum without, unfortunately, the museum having direct access to that funding being able to be utilized specifically for staffing.
Julie Menin
0:25:27
Correct.
0:25:28
The idea is that we come up with an immediate emergency plan to support the museum, and this would be one very significant element of it.
Laurie Cumbo
0:25:37
Got it.
0:25:38
Thank you so much.
0:25:40
Thank you.
0:25:40
Keep them coming.