Henderson OKs budget for space, science center

By Erin Dostal

Wednesday, June 16, 2010 | 12:37 p.m.

The Henderson City Council on Tuesday approved a $220,000 budget for the Henderson Space and Science Center for the 2010-2011 fiscal year.

Project manager Ray Shubinski presented the proposed budget, which amounted to about $14,000 less than the previous year’s budget.

The space and science center opened its first exhibit, “Ends of the Earth, From Polar Bears to Penguins,” on May 22. It will be at the Galleria at Sunset Mall – in a vacant storefront on the second floor next to Kohl’s – until Sept. 12.

Ensuring the success of the exhibit will be the board’s primary focus for the rest of the summer, Shubinski said. About 5,100 school children are scheduled for group visits through the summer.

The exhibit, curated by Canadian-based Science North, came to Henderson after it was supposed to go to a museum in Fresno, Calif., that has since closed. With nowhere to put the exhibit for the time it was to be displayed in Fresno, the company rented “Ends of the Earth” to Henderson for $60,000, which is less than half the price it would normally charge for such an exhibit.

The exhibit cost an additional $26,000 to ship and assemble, Shubinski said.

The $86,000 came from $234,000 in start-up funds set aside by the city for the science center. That money comes from the interest Henderson collects on $25.3 million it has in its land fund, according to Rob Brisendine, operations manager for the city’s Cultural Arts and Tourism Department.

Ultimately, the center will cost about $63 million to build on a site at U.S. 95 and Galleria.

During Tuesday's council meeting, Councilwoman Gerri Schroder doted on the exhibit, saying her daughter loved it. She read comments the group had collected, all of which indicated they enjoyed the exhibit and were excited for a center to be built.

Next year’s budget includes $80,000 for another traveling exhibit. This time, it will be about space.

Shubinski said he had already researched many traveling exhibit options, which he will present to the center’s board at their July 27th meeting at 4:30 p.m. at 2360 Corporate Circle in Henderson.

“The two most common questions we get are ‘what’s the next exhibit?’ and ‘when is the center going to open?’” he said.

“I think the most negative thing I’ve read is that it’s too cold in the exhibit, and it’s about polar bears,” he added, laughing.

Shubinski also announced Tuesday night that, as of June 11, the project is a 501c3 nonprofit. This status will allow the group to apply for state and federal grants in the future.

CORRECTION: This story was changed to remove a reference to the vote being unanimous. Councilwoman Kathleen Boutin voted against the budget plan. | (June 16, 2010)