FORT WALTON BEACH — A city proposal that could displace the Emerald Coast Science Center has sparked strong opposition among the tiny museum’s loyal supporters.
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City Manager Michael Beedie plans to ask the City Council to declare the museum’s property surplus and advertise it for a new long-term lease.
“This parcel is part of the overall (Fort Walton) Landing property, so it would be in the best interest of the city to market the parcel as a long-term lease site and not an outright sale,” Beedie said in an email to the Daily News.
The rationale is to generate recurring revenue from city-owned properties, he said.
Beedie said the Science center could submit its own proposal for a long-term lease.
But that lease agreement would be at fair market value — an amount museum supporters say the nonprofit likely could not afford to pay.
The Science Center currently enjoys a deeply discounted lease with the city that expires in September 2014. The museum’s annual lease payment is $3,416.04 this year.
That below-market rent is what allows the museum to stay open, said Jamie LaFollette, executive director of the Science Center.
He said the museum, which opened in the building on Brooks Street in 1989, is an asset to the city’s downtown.
“We are the only kid-centered organization in downtown Fort Walton Beach,” LaFollette said in an email to the Daily News. “ … If we are not prominently located, the community, admissions, programs and membership will suffer, which will impact what we offer to the kids in the community.”
The museum draws about 17,000 visitors a year to the downtown area. It relies primarily on revenue from admission, educational programs, private donations and the discounted lease from the city to stay afloat, he said.
The museum’s 0.8 acres is one of several properties Beedie plans to propose the City Council declare surplus at a special meeting in August.
Beedie said the museum parcel has great potential because of its waterfront location and the growing popularity of downtown.
In addition, the City Council has said it wants to generate more interest in waterfront activities downtown since the city installed a new sound system and dock at Fort Walton Landing, he said.
Museum supporters concede that the land is valuable but don’t want the museum to be forced out of such a visible location and the only home it’s ever had.
Almost 200 people have signed an online petition at www.change.org started Monday by museum volunteer Traci Brosnaham. Many others have contacted council members, Mayor Mike Anderson and Beedie to urge them to keep the museum where it is.
“It’s the perfect location,” said Brosnaham, who frequents the museum with her two small children. “I personally enjoy it being at the Landing because we can make a day of it. We play at the park and we can have a picnic, and sometimes we walk downtown.”
The museum’s board of directors is planning a special meeting to discuss the proposal, Chairwoman Mary Tinsley said.
“We’re really looking forward to working with the city to find a resolution,” she said.
Tinsley said the museum is an asset used by schools and families in Okaloosa, Walton, Santa Rosa and Escambia counties.
“Our program of work impacts the entire Emerald Coast,” she said. “Our greatest asset is developing a child’s interest in science and enabling them to go on to higher education.”
The museum offers 5,000 square feet of exhibits as well as traditional and informal science education during the school year and summer, LaFollette said.
“We also teach weekly science labs to the students at the Northwest Florida Ballet Académie — a public school,” he said. “This year more than 2,400 students came to the Science Center for field trips.”
Other popular programs include astronomy viewings, kid nights at the museum, a portable planetarium, Saturday morning science classes and weekly summer camps.
City Councilman Dick Rynearson said he understands that the museum wants to stay put, but noted that the building “is not in the best of shape.”
“I’m not in favor of sinking any more money into it,” he said. “In my estimation, we’d probably be better served tearing it down and making a parking lot there. I’m sympathetic to the Science Center. I think we could find them another home.”
Rynearson said the current Creative Senior Center on Memorial Parkway might be a good location.
“It’s got lots of land, good parking and a good park right there for kids to play on,” he said.
Contact Daily News Staff Writer Kari C. Barlow at 850-315-4438 or kbarlow@nwfdailynews.com. Follow her on Twitter @KariBnwfdn.