Annual meeting highlights both sides for Morden museum and research centre
The past year brought a good news and bad news scenario to the Canadian Fossil Discovery Centre in Morden.
There was the success of significant projects like the opening of the field station and acquisition of a 3D printing system as well as increased visitation. However, it all came with rising costs and grants and funding revenue that could not keep pace.
In the end, the museum came out of the year with a deficit in the $30,000 range, so executive director Adolfo Cuetara
“The expenses and the inflation are a concern. The expenses are growing faster than our capacity to generate new revenue, and that is a problem that is not getting better,” Cuetara said following the recent annual meeting.
They had hoped for a funding increase from the City of Morden, which is a primary source of revenue support, but he also recognizes the challenges faced by the city.
“I think there is a lot of pressure from all external institutions or organizations that they all want as well a greater part of the pie,” he said.
Regardless, he noted the museum is doing important work and contributing to the continued development of the city.
“We are bringing economic growth to the city,” said Cuetara.
The museum saw an increase in attendance with 13,559 paid visitors in 2023 compared to 11,819 in 2022. School tours were also successful with 30 tours bringing 873 students through the museum.
Cuetara also cited a number of key projects and improvements including the new field and research station, which provided a boost to the dig tours and led to and assisted with a significant new mosasaur fossil find.
“We are working every day to build that justification for the new building and investment.”
He encouraged supporters to consider the potential economic impact if, for example, 10,000 visitors from
outside the local region spent an average of $156 – that would be a contribution of $1.5 million to local economy.
Cuetara also highlighted the new larger and renovated gift shop, which saw a profit increase to over $33,000 from just under $29,000 in 2022.
The financial challenges remain though, and the museum showed a deficit of over $30,000 following a deficit of about $17,000 in 2022.
During the pandemic, when it was boosted with additional sources of support, there was a surplus of $120,000 in 2020 and $44,000 in 2021.
Now, grant revenue declined from over $517,000 in 2022 to just over $154,000 in 2023, and there were a number of additional expenses and rising costs, and Cuetara noted some of the government funding is for specific projects and doesn’t support operational costs.
“We can’t grab a single dollar from those for our operational expenses,” he said. “It would be great if we could get even say five per cent of a grant to dedicate to it.”
In the meantime, he said they will continue to explore all options and are controlling expenses where they can including no increase in salaries for example.
A major factor in the big picture is also wanting to make their case that they can justify the long term goal of having their own building.
“Overall, I think we are doing a good job. We are showing that with the numbers,” said Cuetara. “I am optimistic … if we can keep progressing with our operational budget.
“The new facility is a long term project. We are constantly working with improvements in mind,” he continued. “The new facility is not just a question of the building … it’s a matter of justification for that investment … and with everything we are doing, we are trying to show and prove that what we are asking for is feasible.
“It’s something that will be a giant benefit for all of southern Manitoba. We are working every day to build that justification for the new building and investment.”
