Fixing the Arizona Experience Museum Mess

For nearly two years, this blog has followed the awful mess caused by the seriously flawed 5 C Arizona Centennial Museum (AKA Arizona Experience Museum) project. That project, the “centerpiece” of the centennial celebration, failed miserably. It also destroyed an existing top rated and very historic museum in the process. 

Now, a newspaper editorial has presented a very constructive suggestion for fixing that mess. An editorial on page B6 of the April 21, 2012 Arizona Republic offers a solution that would mark Arizona’s centennial with two successes rather than a notorious failure. The link to the editorial, entitled “Solution to Marking Centennial” is: http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/opinions/articles/2012/04/20/20120420editorial0421-solution-marking-centennial.html

The brilliant and inspired editorial makes the following points:

1.      The initial project became too expensive to seriously consider completion

2.      The new Arizona Experience website is achieving the goals of the Arizona Experience museum at a fraction of the cost

3.      The website makes the wide ranging information about Arizona available to the entire world, not just a handful of visitors to a brick and mortar museum

4.      There is a serious need for the K-12 educational programs previously offered by the mineral museum

5.      Arizona’s centennial year can still end with two remarkable successes: www.arizonaexperience.org and a restored and improved mineral museum.

Will Arizona’s elected leaders respond to this thoughtful and practical suggestion?

A TALE OF TWO CENTENNIALS

 Anonymous guest post:           

On a recent visit to New Mexico I discovered that 2012 was also their Centennial Year.  The contrast between the activities, enthusiasm and participation between New Mexico and Arizona was striking.

The first big difference was noticeable just driving into New Mexico.  It didn’t take long to notice the number of cars and other vehicles with the New Mexico centennial license plate proudly displayed.  They also had t-shirts with the license plate on them.  This was obviously planned and promoted well in advance.  In Arizona, I have to admit that we finally have one, but I have never seen one on a vehicle.  Worse than that, the Centennial 12 Foundation borrowed the $32,000 for the set-up for the special plate from the Dept. of Transportation.  Have we sold enough to pay that off???

Another contrast was the advertising cities, large and small, had available in brochures about the centennial activities for their community. The centennial items for sale were found at events in communities, and people talked about their history, and had information about the celebrations all over the state.

Finally, the starkest contrast was their “signature” project vs. ours.  For New Mexico, the Governor’s initiative was the Centennial Children’s Legacy Fund.  This incredible project  raised money to serve their children through projects that will enhance the education and welfare of children.  This gift to the children for the next 100 years will be administered by a private foundation in the form of grants to organizations helping children. Money was raised through a series of Centennial Balls in cities, and through citizen donations, and is ongoing.  WOW!

In Arizona, we dishonored students and their desire for earth science education, by abruptly closing the historic and self-supporting Mining and Mineral Museum. This was done to promote our governor’s (and AHS’S) fantasy of a 5C’s Centennial Museum, turned into the non-existent Arizona Experience Museum. This “signature” project barged in and replaced or diminished more reasonable centennial projects, and was based on the very false assumption that businesses and people would just love to give their money to the state to promote the Governor’s legacy!  Our centennial is mired in controversy, disappointment, and anger.  We managed to take away from our children, and now have an empty building.  I’m planning to send a check to the Children’s Legacy Fund in New Mexico—giving is better than taking away.  They got it right!

Further subsidy for the Arizona Historical Society

In spite of a resume of failed projects, the Arizona Legislature continues to divert tax dollars to the Arizona Historical Society.  Some are clearly visible, such as those in the multimillion dollar annual budget appropriations. Some are hidden, such as proceeds from the sale of centennial license plates. An accountant would have difficulty determining the total tax burden caused by the AHS.

The latest indirect subsidy is partial relief from rent for state owned buildings.  Twelve members of the Joint Committee on Capitol Review voted to grant the AHS a partial rent exemption of $44,400.

Following budget cuts in 2010, the Legislature refused to do the same for the then top rated Arizona Mining and Mineral Museum and its K -12 science education programs. That precipitated the eventual demise of the mineral museum.

Reference:

State of Arizona

Minutes of the Joint Committee on Capital Review

Tuesday, March 27, 2012

8:00 AM, House Hearing Room 4

Empty Green Building

School buses no longer bring children to the former Arizona Mining and Mineral Museum and tourists keep finding the doors locked. But the building is now green. Will the value of the electricity generated by the solar panels offset the money the state is spending on a curator for an empty building? Reported status of the stimulus funded project is as follows.

Arizona Department of Commerce - Energy Office

Solar Photovoltaic @ the Arizona Experience

1502 W. Washington, Phoenix, AZ

Date Funded: 07/01/10 Senior Project Manager: Janet Collegio

General Manager: Roger Berna

Budget: $356,636.00

Budget Source: ARRA Index No. 21605

Architect/Engineer: Sky Engineering, Inc.

Contractor: Sky Engineering, Inc.

Notice to Proceed: 02/01/11

Completion: 01/30/12 (100 Percent Complete)

Project Description

Design and install a Photovoltaic System on the Arizona Experience (previously known as AZ Mining & Minerals Bldg)

Project Status

Installation of the solar photovoltaic system has been completed.

Waiting for an opening with APS to commission the system for conformity to plans and specifications.

Once system has been approved, APS will then schedule the change-out of the existing meter to a bi-directional meter.

Reference: Arizona Department of Administration, Project Status Report, Roger Burna, February 29, 2012

Legislature approved inefficiency and redundancy

The Arizona Historical Society website (http://www.arizonahistoricalsociety.org/) currently includes the following:

Passport to Geology: Minerals from Around the World

In this one-hour adventure, Curator of Mineralogy Dr. Madison Barkley will showcase some incredible mineral and rock specimens from all over the world, and you will be able to view them right here in Arizona.

Free with $5 general museum admission.

Saturday April 21, 2012

10:30 am – 12:00 pm   949 E. 2nd St. Tucson AZ 85719

Comments:

The Tucson area is already served by the mineral museum at the University of Arizona which is open to the public.

Metropolitan Phoenix now has no mineral museum.

Admission at the former Arizona Mining and Mineral Museum in Phoenix was only $2 rather than $5.

The AHS mineral program is currently costing taxpayers more than the mineral museum in Phoenix did when it closed. The mineral museum was operated by volunteers and self-supported staff. The AHS mineral program has a state paid employee.

Tens of thousands (per year) of metropolitan Phoenix students are now being deprived of free  K-12 mineral museum education programs that supported the state mandated education curriculum.

Less for more!

Rewriting Arizona history?

The previous post discussed a scheduled Centennial Conference presentation that included the Arizona Experience Museum (AKA the Arizona Centennial Museum). A year ago that museum was being billed as the “centerpiece of the centennial celebration” and as the “number one signature project." Now, that presentation has suddenly vanished from the program.  Apparently, the centennial conference will ignore the “centerpiece”.

Also gone is a presentation about mining:

FROM THE GROUND UP, Vivia Strang, Arizona State Historic Preservation Office

It would be impossible to write the history of Arizona without including a long and colorful chapter on mining. From the time Coronado came searching for the Seven Cities of Cibola, the quest for mineral wealth has never died, and the history of Arizona is etched with tales of gold, silver, and copper. More than 400,000 mining claims have been recorded in Arizona, and it is estimated that over the years more than 4,000 companies were formed for the purpose of mining.

Apparently, a “long and colorful chapter” of Arizona history is simply being erased.  Are Arizona historians afraid of recent history?  Will the elimination of the top rated and historic Arizona Mining and Mineral Museum as a result of the Arizona Centennial Museum boondoggle be ignored? Is Arizona history being rewritten?

Note: Helpful links to this blog are being routinely removed from the Centennial Conference Facebook page.

Arizona Centennial Conference to discuss Arizona Experience Museum fiasco

The Arizona Centennial Conference is being held at the Pointe Hilton Tapatio Cliffs Resort in Phoenix on April 18, 2012 through April 22, 2012. According to the agenda (http://www.arizonacentennial.org/):

Featured are more than 54 presentations by locally and nationally recognized speakers on topics pertaining to Arizona’s rich history. On-site and off-site personal development workshops, poster sessions, historic tours and a dedicated exhibit area for vendors are included.  ---- and the Museum Association of Arizona’s annual meeting and award luncheon is held in addition to the Governor’s Award for Historical Preservation.

The agenda shows one session of particular interest:

ONE SIZE DOESN'T FIT ALL: A PRESERVATION BALANCING ACT, Dennis Barrie and Matthew Jennings, Westlake Reed Leskosky.

The restoration and adaptive reuse of three museums present a broad array of preservation issues and offer insights into the give and take between economics and authenticity, restoration, technology and sustainability. The projects include Tovrea Castle house museum and gardens in Phoenix; The Arizona Experience museum celebrating the state's 2012 centennial and beyond; and the Mob Museum in Las Vegas.

Exactly how will Barrie and Jennings present the Arizona Experience Museum? Nothing was preserved, nothing was restored, and nothing was even reused.

However, a top rated piece of Arizona’s unique mining heritage, dating back to 1884, was destroyed.