‘AMBITIOUS’ REVENUE GOAL
Remai budget plan reveals area of ‘vulnerability’
As Saskatoon’s new art gallery prepares for its first full year of operation, a 2018 budget document acknowledges its planned revenue is “very ambitious” and an area of “vulnerability.”
The Remai Modern Art Gallery of Saskatchewan plans to raise nearly half of its operating budget in 2018, $5.3 million, from sources other than the city’s funding of $5.5 million.
Overall, the gallery’s budget is expected to jump from $7.4 million this year, when the gallery will be open for just over two months, to $10.8 million next year. The city’s subsidy is expected to increase from $5.1 million in 2017 with the remainder of the difference coming from other sources of revenue.
To collect $5.3 million, the Remai will have to bring in more than 10 times as much as the $500,000 in non-city revenue the Mendel Art Gallery raised in its last full year of operation in 2014. Slightly more than 13 per cent of the Mendel’s revenues came from sources other than the city.
“Revenue projections are very ambitious and this is an area of particular vulnerability for the gallery,” the Remai Modern’s budget document says.
The gallery’s 2018 budget will be considered along with the rest of the City of Saskatoon’s 2018 budget, starting on Monday at city hall.
Gallery executive director Gregory Burke is expected to appear to present the budget, which cites a variety of concerns in addition to revenues.
They include “significantly” higher than expected costs for security, lower than expected revenue from food services and reduced arts grants in 2018. The gallery also failed to adjust the 2014 figures from its most recent business plan for inflation, which is expected to result in higher costs of $600,000 for 2018, the report says.
The gallery also plans to pay back a $470,000 loan from the city in 2018.
“We understand and appreciate the fiscal challenges facing the City of Saskatoon,” the budget report says.
To that end, it says gallery officials have identified $100,000 in saving and deferred hiring for 2.5 new full-time positions that were scheduled for 2018. Travel will also be restricted to “program development or revenue generation,” the document says.
On the revenue side, the Remai Modern charges for admission. The gallery’s budget anticipates $353,833 more in admissions and membership sales in 2018 than the $146,167 that was budgeted for in 2017.
The gallery’s 2018 budget also projects triple the 2017 budget revenue for gift shop sales and the commission on the restaurant, bringing in $650,000 and $105,000, respectively.
The largest increase in revenue is anticipated to come in the area of fundraising and development, which is expected to rise from $251,667 this year to $1.5 million next year. This is likely connected to donations pledged by philanthropist Ellen Remai.
The budget document calls the gallery’s opening weekend in October a “blockbuster” with more than 9,000 visitors. More than 1,400 people have purchased memberships, the report adds.
The document does not indicate whether the gallery is on track to meet its 2017 revenue goals, which were established before the gallery’s opening date was known. The cost of building it continues to draw criticism; the latest estimate suggested it’s close to $4 million over budget.
We understand and appreciate the fiscal challenges facing the City of Saskatoon.