A year later, Pember on path to recovery

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By Derek Liebig

A year after a state audit revealed the Granville institution was in a precarious financial state, the Pember Library and Museum has made what officials call “steady and stable progress” toward recovery.

During the past 12 months, the board has acted to stabilize its finances, completed some infrastructural improvements, expanded programming and outreach and laid the groundwork for future growth.

“We’re hitting on all cylinders – financial, programming, facility improvements and planning,” said Bob Tatko, Pember trustee and treasurer. “Our goal is to return the Pember to its original grandeur and greatness.”

“And I think we’re doing that,” added Mary King, president of the Pember board.

The audit

In January 2014, a state audit found there was inadequate oversight of the institution’s financial activities, insufficient documentation of cash receipts on a number of occasions, and bills that were paid late because at the time they were due there was not enough cash on hand.

But perhaps the most significant finding was that the institution violated its agreement with the Pember Foundation by dipping into Foundation funds to cover operating expenses.

The audit found that the board improperly used $144,027 of Foundation funds. According to its agreement with the Pember Foundation, that money was meant to be used solely for investment purposes. Only the interest was meant to be used for bills.

It was later discovered that $722,000 contained in the institution’s Capital Campaign Fund, which was formed in the 1990s to finance the expansion of the Pember Library and Museum, had been spent, leaving only $170,479 in the account.

The findings rocked the community and drew the ire of public officials who were upset with the lack of oversight of public funds.

A month after the audit was released, four members of the Pember’s board of trustees resigned because they weren’t village residents. Since then four other board members have left the board.

Late last February, the Pember’s Executive Director Pat Wesner, announced she was retiring after 24 years of service.

Charting a future

In the wake of the resignations, King was appointed president of the board and Tatko was named treasurer.

The new board immediately began trying to stabilize the institution’s finances which, at the time, Tatko described as dire.

During the 2011 and 2012 fiscal years, the Pember lost $106,000.

The board voted to adopt an austerity budget, eliminating tens of thousands of dollars in professional payments.

The board also took steps to replenish the capital campaign fund, investing the balance, about $163,000, in “large cap, blue chip dividend stocks.”

The board invested $87,000 from its endowment account with Morgan Stanley and the balance is now more than $89,000.

Efforts were also made to acquire grant money and step up fundraising efforts.

And those efforts appear to be paying off.

Although the fiscal year doesn’t end until May 31, Tatko said the institution should be in the black in 2014-15.

Infrastructure

A number of physical improvements have been made to improve the Pember’s infrastructure.

An antiquated boiler has been replaced with a 525,000 BTU heater, steam vents have been replaced and exposed piping has been wrapped in three layers of insulation. Two basement windows that were previously covered in plywood have been insulated and are being replaced, while all of the basement windows have been caulked and insulated.

The project, paid for with grant money and donor contributions, has already saved the library between 400 and 500 gallons of fuel, Tatko said.

An entirely new electrical system has been installed. Old wiring was replaced and a new 400 amp service panel with three new feed lines installed.

To further improve efficiency, the library installed 44 four-foot LED light fixtures that have increased the light output in the library and museum by nearly 40 percent.

An energy audit conducted by NYSERDA says the changes are expected to save the library and museum between $4,400 and $5,100 in electric costs annually.

The lighting improvements have also made the museum’s displays easier to see, helping the artifacts on display to “pop.”

Slate tiles on the east and south elevations of the roof have been repaired or replaced, eliminating a number of leaks. The damage those leaks caused to the museum ceiling has also been repaired.

“That was something we felt and others felt was very important,” King said.

The front steps of the library have been repaired and there are plans to replace carpeting in the entryway.

Also, considerable energy has been spent to improve the Hebron Nature Preserve. The trail system at the property has been cleared of debris, footbridges were rebuilt and a new bulletin board was erected by local Boy Scouts.

The board has also developed a forestry plan that will provide revenue for the library and museum while also helping to manage the land.

“The next thing we would like to do is make repairs to the schoolhouse and make it usable again,” King said. A grant is being sought to cover 75 percent of that restoration.

One of the biggest projects is studying the feasibility and cost of constructing an elevator.

“It would serve two purposes: First, it would make the museum handicapped accessible and two, it would make the community and the donors realize there was investment of the capital campaign funds,” King said.

King said State Sen. Betty Little visited the museum recently and has pledged her support in helping the institution acquire grant money for the elevator project. King said she described the museum as a “regional destination.”

Additional projects

Another significant project is the digital recording of the museum’s collection. Staff and volunteers are in the midst of photographing and cataloging all the artifacts in the museum, numbered at nearly 7,000 specimens.

Each piece is cleaned, photographed and cataloged. Tatko said the project will create a digital record of the museum’s collection as well as help the village, owner of the collection, come up with a more accurate estimate of its value for insurance purposes.

He said the value of the collection has never been accurately determined.

King said with the institution’s finances now stabilized and some much-needed repairs done to the library and museum, the board is focusing its efforts on implementing more programming.

For the first time since 2007, she said, the board approved a measure to invest more than $10,000 to purchase books.

Members also plan to meet with local senior groups and work with them to identify programming those people would like to see.

The museum will be conducting outreach programs with area schools and libraries and hopes to encourage fall foliage bus tours to stop by the museum.

“We’re trying to provide life-long learning,” King said.

She expressed gratitude for the Friends of the Pember, who she said had provided the institution with financial support when it was needed most. She also praised staff.

“We have a very good staff,” King said. “They’ve been very important.”

The library has also regained the confidence of the community. King said a number of donors, as well as community organizations, have pledged their support moving forward.

Mayor Brian LaRose said last month he has seen the strides the institution has made.

“The Pember is in a great place moving forward,” he said. “They took a problem, figured out what the issues were and then solved them.”