Milwaukee County Executive Scott Walker last week said he believes the new head of the financially struggling Milwaukee Public Museum should agree to cut his $185,000 annual salary by as much as $20,000.
Dan Finley started as director of the museum on Monday. Board members have said they would not ask him to accept a cut in pay despite calls for such from Walker, other local officials, and museum employees who had previously accepted a 10% pay cut to help the museum out of its financial crisis.
The museum last month reached a final agreement with its banks on a $6 million county-backed loan that will help keep the museum open. The loan will be repaid with aid the museum receives from Milwaukee County. The museum's banks include JP Morgan Chase & Co., which also provides a letter of credit on $14 million of bonds, and Marshall & Ilsley. The museum has about $14 million of outstanding revenue bonds.
The museum's top leaders recently resigned after it was disclosed that the institution was near a financial collapse, struggling with a $7 million deficit in its $22 million budget. Milwaukee County handed over control of the facility to a private nonprofit board in 1992, but it still owns the building and collections and provides annual subsidies for operations.
As part of a bailout in which the county has pledged a backup on the loan, the museum has handed control of its finances over to a five-member oversight board and has agreed to make budget cuts and launch a fundraising drive.
The oversight committee last week agreed to release about $200,000 of the $6 million loan amid assurances from museum officials that they were back on track following deep spending cuts, layoffs, and an agreement with vendors that extends repayment of some bills.
