ONTARIO MUSEUMS HEARD AT QUEEN'S PARK.
The OMA organized its second Ontario Museums at Queen's Park day on October 4, with 50 meetings held with MPPs, including ten ministers, culminating in a reception at Queen’s Park which welcomed more than 100 guests, many of them from key government ministries. Representatives from museum clusters and sites across the province, and many delegates from the OMA Annual Conference attended meetings. The Association was pleased to be joined by OAAG and the Ontario Historical Society, with sector workers and volunteers participating in meetings with Ontario’s elected officials. It was an opportune time to make the case for strong government support of museums, bringing forward a request for an additional $ 2.5 million to be added to the annual CMOG funding envelope. This increase to the Community Operating Grant program would enable museums across the province to enhance their capacity to become more self reliant, to continue to make their significant contribution to the tourism economy; to support the Ontario education curriculum; and to make our cities and town better places to live and work. As found in the key messages presented at meetings: “An investment of $2.5 million in the Community Museum Operating Grants Program would provide Ontario’s community museums with the resources they need to keep them relevant and innovative in the context of Ontario’s changing society and economy. It would provide an adequate platform on which to build and strengthen their contribution to our communities and economy. It would provide the base they need to adapt their business model to become more self-reliant. This level of funding would also ensure the program operates at the level prescribed in the Ontario Heritage Act, $ 2.5 being the gap amount identified in CMOG analysis for 2004 .” We encourage members to communicate with their MPPs early in the New Year, copying them on cover letters with your January 30th CMOG Standards questionnaires submitted to the Ministry. Please copy the OMA and Ministers Chan and Duncan to support our efforts to have this amount considered in the upcoming provincial budget. |