The Peoria Riverfront Museum saw a surge in donations and sponsorships last fiscal year compared to what it budgeted. But the facility also had to draw $680,000 more from its reserves to cover operations than it planned. Museum President Sam Gappmayer says the deficit only lasted the first six months of the year. He says the museum made adjustments to land itself in the black for the remainder of the fiscal year:
“A lot of it was right-sizing the staff and creating a staff that was appropriate for any institution serving a community this size. We scoured every expense item wherever we could and we found some where we were overpaying when compared to the market.”
Gifts and sponsorships of museum events totaled more than 800-thousand-dollars than originally forecast. But daytime ticket sales at the Giant Screen Theater were down 43-percent compared to budget. To that end, Gappmayer says the museum aims to increase showings of art and independent films compared to popular Hollywood movies.