Now What? Petaluma Museum at Crossroads

It’s been more than a week since we published our and the comments keep pouring in. The discussion has been fascinating and has raised a number of key questions.

Should the Petaluma Historical Museum be a place that only focuses on preserving the town’s heritage? Or should it take a broader approach and become a platform for pop culture, as wild, varied and occasionally wacky, as it can sometimes be? Can it do both? And while we’re at it, should the museum sell items that residents have donated to the institution, thinking that they one day may be part of the collection, in an effort to shore up revenues?

These are all difficult questions, which may or may not be addressed when the board meets next Monday, Oct. 17 at 6pm. Some have called for Museum President Joe Noriel’s ouster, saying that he has not only mismanaged funds by seeking out expensive exhibits, but also strayed from the museum’s mission to be a repository of local history.

But many others defend Noriel, an accountant with no museum experience, as someone who has breathed life back into the dull exhibits and doubled membership to more than 700 people today.

Meanwhile, many Patch readers saw the current fiscal problems—$30,000 lost over the past two years— as a chance to regroup and bring the different factions together into a vibrant museum that honors its rich history while showcasing interesting and new exhibits that stretch our intellect and imagination.

“As a fairly new transplant to Petaluma, I went to the museum when we first moved here,” wrote Patch reader Kari Popovic. “Never had any cause or desire to go back until recently with the influx of new displays. I don't see why the museum can't both provide a peek at Petaluma's past and yet still function as a museum, bringing exhibits that explore life outside Petaluma to us without having to drive into the City. How cool is that?”

Gretchen Paul, agrees.

“Just from the looks of (it), everyone wants nearly the same thing,” Paul commented. “With the help of a kind unbiased mediator, I bet the museum could soar not only into a state of profitability (isn't that what everyone is cranky about?), but to a place where one is excited to go to the museum.”

But critics say the museum lacks a viable business plan and could soon run out of funds if it keeps organizing expensive exhibits that lose money, as numerous past exhibits have done.

“I must warn the museum board that they are traveling down a dangerous path - degrading the "brand" of the well-loved of the Petaluma Historical Library and Museum by ignoring its core value of preserving and communicating the rich history of Petaluma,” wrote Joan Cooper, who founded BioBottoms, a reusable diaper and children’s clothing company in 1981 and is a former fellow at the Haas School of Business at UC Berkeley. “Without a viable business plan to pay for Mr. Noriel's desire to re-invent the museum, the museum's endowment will soon be gone.”

Other readers were surprised that these exciting new exhibits were seldom advertised.

“Whatever happened to outreach programs?” lamented one reader, who only signed as Frankie2011. “You need a program event coordinator with good ideas. One idea I have would be showing the historic Petaluma, and the current Petaluma, i.e. arts, politics, developments all under one roof networking with other Petaluma establishments that ‘make’ Petaluma what it is today.”

But the museum’s budget has been severely impacted since transit occupancy tax funds (hotel tax) that used to fund advertising and two full-time positions, were eliminated in 2008 due to the ongoing budget crisis.

Others suggested that the museum recruit students from high schools to volunteer and create a docent program to help them learn the fundamentals of running a museum and just learn some responsibility. Some readers dreamt of having a bistro as part of the museum where local food would be served and exhibits of modern art using symbols of Petaluma’s history, such as a wall installation made entirely out of milk bottles.

“We are told by some in the community that we need to "think globally," wrote Patch reader Nick Provenzano. “What better way to do so then with exhibits that break past the borders of our wonderful town? Learning about the egg industry or arm wrestling legacy of Petaluma, while interesting and important, tends to feel rehashed. What better way to connect our town to the world than through exhibits that show how we are connected to the events (past, present and future) of the planet?”

The museum board meets next Monday, Oct. 17 at 6pm at the museum and Noriel has invited any concerned resident to attend and share their views.