The following was posted on the OMA list last Friday.


> RE: Ottawa Heritage Budget Reinstated
>
> Here is the latest information received concerning the Ottawa Heritage
> Budget. "Everything in the heritage budget earmarked for reduction or
> elimination on February 11 was reinstated except for a forty thousand
> dollar programming exhibition grant for the Ottawa City Archives,"
> stated David Flemming, President, Heritage Ottawa. A sustainability plan
> for museums was also approved later today. A tax increase of
> approximately 3 % is expected.
>
> Clearly, the OMA will be interested in further evaluation of the Ottawa
> situation for lessons learned,and suggested follow up and action steps
> in anticipation of future such municipal budgets.
>
> Here is more information from today's debate in Ottawa reproduced with
> David Flemming's permission. (P.S. HR&SS stands for Health, Recreation
> and Social Services).
>
> From: David Flemming
> Sent: Friday, March 26, 2004 11:11 AM
>
> Good Morning,
>
> City Council took less than ten minutes this morning to reinstate all of
> the Heritage and Museum programs which had been recommended by HR&SS
> Committee, including the Heritage Program funding envelope which
> includes Doors Open Ottawa.
>
> Their retention was passed unanimously except for a vote on the Heritage
> Funding Grants (PS3.21) which includes funding for Heritage Ottawa,
> CHOO/COPO, Osgoode Township Historical Society and one-time grants to 15
> community groups.
>
> Councillor El-Chantiry moved, seconded by Councillor Bloess, that this
> budget item ($139,000) be cut, despite the unanimous support for its
> retention by HR&SS Committee. This motion was defeated on the following
> vote:
>
> Yeas - 8 (Harder, Kreling, Brooks, El-Chantiry, Jellett, Bloess,
> Thompson, Hunter)
>
> Nays - 13 (Deans, Bellemare, Legendre, McRae, Stavinga, Holmes, Doucet,
> Bédard, Humes, Little, Feltmate, Cullen, Mayor Chiarelli)
>
> Absent - (Chiarelli)
>
> All of the proposed cuts have been restored except for the $40,000 grant
> to the Archives for exhibits and outreach. The retention of this was not
> recommended by HR&SS and Council unanimously supported this
> recommendation.
>
> There is one more motion which will be dealt with later today, dealing
> with the sustainability plan for the Museums. I suspect that this will
> pass unanimously and that its addition by HR&SS Committee probably made
> acceptance of the heritage programs and services easier for some of the
> councillors this morning.
>
> Thanks to those of you who wrote letters and e-mails and in other ways
> supported the campaign. It has been a long and difficult four months.
> Perhaps now we can all get back to doing the type of heritage work that
> we all enjoy.
>
> Cheers,
>
> David Flemming
>
> Contact: Marie G. Lalonde,
> Executive Director, Ontario Museum Association
> [log in to unmask]
> 416-348-8672 toll free 1-866-OMA-8672
>
>