By Basil E. Bacorn —
Tensions were high at the Nichols town board meeting Tuesday night as the board took action to amend what deputy town supervisor Brenda Fay-Pelotte described as a “deficiency” found by the town’s attorney. To do so, board members approved a resolution that will close the Nichols Historical Museum by Nov. 30, 2024.
According to Fay-Pelotte, the town’s attorney had recently informed the board that the Nichols Historical Museum, located at 54 E. River Rd., had not been established in accordance with the necessary laws and regulations. She explained after the meeting ended that “the museum was operating under the historian’s guidance without proper authority to establish a museum or receive personal property in a government building.”
Town historian Kem Baker expressed her concerns to the board at the meeting.
Baker read from sections of the resolution, including references to “standards established by the Town Board” that she says do not exist, and what she feels is an “impossible” timeframe.
The resolution approved at the meeting dictates that Baker shall “as soon as practicable and no less than 30 days following the adoption of this Resolution, furnish the Town Board with an inventory of each item under her custody,” including a description of the item and identification of ownership information.
The resolution goes on to state, “Following the Town’s Bicentennial Celebration on Sept. 2, 2024, the Historian shall make arrangements for the closure of the Temporary Display of Historic Materials,” and “arrange for the return of all historic items on loan to the Town.”
Items donated to the town for the Historical Museum will be returned to donors, given to other appropriate entities, or “disposed of.”
“We’ve had two meetings on this,” Town Supervisor Esther Woods stated at the meeting in response to Baker’s concerns, adding, “We’ve had a meeting with the board and the attorney, and we’ve had a meeting with Kem [Baker].”
“All that stuff has to go, you cannot keep it.”
Woods then told Baker, “Either you give it back to the people that want it, if they don’t want it, then… you might have to try to donate it to another museum…”
“Or get the 501(c)3 from the IRS,” board member Roseanne Cole stated, adding, “because we can’t call it a museum because it’s not; we did not realize that we could not call it a museum without Board of Regents approval – there’s a whole list of things we had to do.”
Baker continued to express her concerns until being cut off by Woods.
“It’s over, it’s all done, I’m going to stop it right now,” she stated. “It’s over. We are not going to hash this out, we hashed this out the other day with the attorney, we are not going to hash this out; it’s not going to happen. We’re going to pass this resolution; everything has to be done by that time period.”
The town board passed the resolution unanimously, after which historian Kem Baker and several other supporters of the museum left the meeting. The discussion of the museum ended until approximately 20 minutes later, when Tioga County historian Emma Sedore approached the board to speak.
“I’m not here to plead that you change your minds,” Sedore said, asking the board to at least extend the Nov. 30 deadline to Dec. 31.
“It took her [Baker] years to collect all of these things and talk to all of the people that donated, and I know how that is,” Sedore explained, and added, “If you’ll only give her a short period of time to make a list and contact all these people, that’s unreasonable.”
The town board did not choose to extend Baker’s timeframe, stating that Baker was with the attorney and the board when the resolution was drafted.
As for Baker’s plans, the town historian has indicated she hopes to pursue the necessary 501(c)3 status. When asked for comment after the end of the town board meeting, Baker offered the following statement from a post she made to her Facebook group:
“Neither myself nor the town board (current and past ones) were aware of these laws. In order to adhere to [these laws] & maintain ‘museum’ [status], one alternative solution is to create a not for profit organization.
“Anyone who may be interested in helping to create one, please contact me … Needed will be at least 5 individuals willing to step up to create a board of directors, to fill with positions of President, VP, secretary, treasurer, etc.
“I’ve just started researching the ins and outs of doing this and would appreciate hearing from any of you interested in helping me.”
The Nichols Town Board meets at 6 p.m. on the fourth Tuesday of each month at 139 Roki Blvd, in Room 8.
Carriage House opens display of items until September
In preparation for the upcoming Bicentennial Celebration on Sept. 2, 2024, the Nichols Historian announced the hosting of a Temporary Display of Historic Materials at the Carriage House. The Display will be open every Tuesday and Wednesday from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., or by appointment with the Town Historian.
This historic display will include items that the Historian has identified as having historic significance to the community. Understanding and appreciating the history of Nichols is an integral part of celebrating the Bicentennial and honoring past residents of the Town.
Following the Bicentennial Celebration, the display will be closed until a permanent home can be arranged for all the historic items.
(Wendy Post contributed to this story.)
The Nichol’s Town Board is a disgrace and should resign immediately. They should have worked with the Carriage House Museum’s caretakers to make sure a plan is put in place to pursue the necessary 501(c)3 status. To demand it be closed and the collection be discarded or given away is vicious and cruel and clearly shows the residents of Nichols that the Board cares not a whit about Nichols or its history. Vote them out when possible and elect people that are proud of Nichols and its past.