CELCAB debates sponsorship benches for Mound House
For a donation, Mound House lovers could soon get their names on a bench at the site.
The Cultural and Environmental Learning Center Advisory Board met Thursday, Aug. 25, for its monthly meeting and finalized some plans for sponsored benches at the historical site.
“We want something simple that will blend in,” said Museum Director Alison Giesen.
The board went over a potential bench design produced by Earth Surfaces, a company based in Naples. The company’s models are able to be customized to make them look more in-place with the surrounding area, such as using crushed shell in the mold. Customization, however, costs more; the bench proposal the board reviewed could be $2,350 a bench.
“I like the simplicity,” said Ceel Spuhler, a board member.
However, other board members thought the cost might be too high, especially since a foundation would need to be laid and a dedication plaque created for each bench, which would increase the cost per bench.
The benches would be purchased by donation, so the cost incurred wouldn’t come back to the Town of Fort Myers Beach; however, the bench sales are also meant to be a fundraising mechanism for the Mound House. The board’s goal would be to get six to eight benches around the site’s paths and gardens.
The board discussed how much it should cost for someone to get their name on a bench. While no one wanted the cost to be astronomical, it does need to give back some funding to the site.
“For anyone to purchase this is a privilege,” Spuhler said. “It’s a gift to be able to do this.”
Bill Grace, the historical advisor, said charging too much might make benches a hard sell. He is also a volunteer at the Koreshan State Park, where there are wooden sponsorship benches.
Giesen said wood is not a good choice because it is a less-durable material that requires more upkeep. She also said since it doesn’t have to be just one person donating the money, that some people will probably chip in together for one bench. She told the board she would research what other area attractions and historical sites ask for sponsored benches and bring back numbers for the board.
“None of us have the magic number,” Chairperson Barbara Hill said.
Planning a historical site’s future
Besides benches, CELCAB has another big project to tackle: longterm strategic planning for the Mound House and museum.
Giesen hopes to set a date in early November to have a workshop that includes all Mound House stakeholders, from town council and CELCAB members to local residents and volunteers. The session will lay down a foundation for how the community would like to move the Mound House forward in the next five years.
“I think it’s a very healthy exercise for all of us,” Hill said. “Now that it’s been open nearly a year, it’s a good time to look at what we’ve done and more importantly move forward.”
It would be the first time the property had a strategic plan, she added.
Giesen said the process would be important to establish how the site should start branding itself once it got marketing funds from the town’s budget. She wants to wait until November for the workshop so that it will be after budget season for council and also will draw in residents and volunteers who are returning for the winter.
Giesen is hoping to contract with the Florida Gulf Coast University Florida Institute of Government to hire a facilitator for the day who can guide the visioning process.