Wheaton park leaders are not sweating museum vote

If Wheaton Park District commissioners share the beliefs of their executive director, then there isn't any doubt about the DuPage County Historical Museum becoming their new headquarters.

Commissioners have never really addressed the issue in a public forum. The topic has been on several agendas, but commissioners have consistently chosen to reserve discussion of the matter to closed session. However, the plan has been in the works for months now so the presumption is that at least a majority of commissioners support the move.

DuPage County staff also supports the move as well as the majority of DuPage County Board members who've provided a public opinion.

That's lead Wheaton Park District Executive Director Mike Benard to think the project should receive a favorable vote next week.

"I think if there's any concern at the county board level it's not about the park district," Benard said. "It's about whether they should be in the business of running that museum."

That doesn't seem to be much of a concern as the museum has consistently been at or near the top of county budget cuts the past few years. Indeed, the most vocal concerns expressed about the plan so far were a solo act by county board member Patrick O'Shea of Lombard this week.

But even those concerns appeared to be centered on minimizing the county's financial contributions to the museum as quickly as possible.

Benard said it's important for O'Shea and anyone who shares his views about the plan to understand the liability the park district is volunteering to take on in running the museum. In trade, the park district is hoping to filter all donations the museum's nonprofit association garners directly back to the museum.

O'Shea is pushing for a kickback from the fundraising efforts to offset the $130,000 annual financial commitment the plan puts the county on the hook for during the next five years. The county will also pay for 75 percent of necessary roof replacement costs.

Benard said Wednesday he doesn't believe O'Shea's concerns are a deal-breaker.

"I gather that he's not interested in having anything to do with the museum," Benard said. "So I think we'll be fine. If there's a downside to this, we can't see it."

For its own part, the park district estimates the only moving costs it will incur with the museum takeover is about $25,000 in computer and telephone wiring and general office setup costs.