City Museums Under Threat: This Includes Our Montgomery's Inn

Toronto's Museums are Under Threat!   Here's How You Can Help.....


All ten of the City's ten museums and historic sites are under threat as of the meeting of the Executive Committee on Monday, September 19/Tuesday, September 20, 2011.

The Threats are:
*  Those with the lowest attendance and revenues compared to costs could be closed.
*  The remaining museums could be divested to a new not for profit organization that could take years to build and finance and would not be part of the City or receive base operating funding
*  The remaining museums could be divested to a restructured, independent Heritage Toronto.  Its mandate currently EXCLUDES museums, it has no professional expertise with museums, and in ten years it has been unable to forge strong links with the suburban parts of the city.

Councillors and the mayor need to hear from THE PEOPLE who love and care about the ten City museums BEFORE the Council Meeting on Monday, September 26, 2011.

In order to survive, thrive, and help to grow their communities, the museums must continue to receive their core funding from the City of Toronto.

With no central Museum of Toronto, the ten historic sites and the collections facility that they share connect us to the story of how this city grew.   They are also places where today's diverse communities can come together to build a shared future.

City of Toronto Sites:

*provide educational programming for children, youths and post secondary students
*host special events year round
*research and develop exhibits, walking tours and public programming
*provide space for meetings, workshops, weddings, family reunions, public gatherings

At Montgomery's Inn, we also:

*have a wealth of programs and services related to food, including our tea room, the farmers' market and the outdoor bake oven
*enjoy a special relationship with culture:  visual arts, drama, and storytelling and with Arts Etobicoke, our community based arts organization which is also facing cuts


Here's what you can do IMMEDIATELY:

*Tell the mayor and city councillors that our historic sites belong to us
*Tell the mayor and city councillors that museums are not just about us but about the future
*Tell the mayor and city councillors why Montgomery's Inn and other community museums are important to you, your community and your city.

Mayor Rob Ford
mayor_ford@toronto.ca
416 397 3673

Deputy Mayor Holyday
councillor_holyday@toronto.ca
416 392 4002

Letter can be sent to:

Office of the Mayor
Toronto City Hall
100 Queen Street West
Toronto, M5H2N2



Even if you don't live in Toronto now, your message is important.