Museum Finds a Way to Energize Revenues

February 10, 2009

Museum Finds a Way to Energize Revenues

At a time when the crumbling economy is forcing many museums and other arts organizations to cut hours, performances, staff members — and to shut down completely in some cases — one museum has a promising new source of revenue.

The Maryhill Museum, in rural Goldendale, Wash., last month signed an agreement with an alternative energy company, allowing the company this year to place 15 wind turbines on the eastern end of museum’s 5,300 acres.

The company, Windy Point Partners, will pay the museum to lease the land and additional fees based on the sale of the turbine-generated energy. The arrangement is expected to produce more than $100,000 and as much as $150,000 annually toward Maryhill’s $1.1-million operating budget.

“It’s a wind-win situation,” said Colleen Schafroth, the museum’s executive director. She said the new income will help offset a slight decline in donations last year and reduced sales in the museum’s shop.

The company, which hopes to generate enough clean electricity to power 250,000 households with its wind turbines, has also pledged more than $1-million to a local preservation fund that works to protect the scenic area around the Columbia River Gorge where the museum is located.

Read The Chronicle’s story about the economy’s impact on arts groups and survival tips for cash-strapped cultural organizations.

— Holly Hall

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Museum Finds a Way to Energize Revenues