The Appleton Redevelopment Authority met 08/10/2022. During the meeting they received an update on the fundraising and capital campaign for the Appleton Public Library project.
Library Director Colleen Rortvedt told the ARA that the fundraising was led by the Friends of Appleton Public Library.
The library had a Library Board of trustees which was the committee of jurisdiction over the library. However, it also had the Friends of Appleton Public Library which was a 503c nonprofit that worked to support the library by providing grants, community support, and volunteers.
The Friends had been working for around 12 years to be able to have the capacity to lead a large capital campaign. Director Rortvedt referred to the Friend’s Capital Campaign Committee as a “dream team” which included Mike Van Asten, Mary Beth Nienhaus, Beth Flaherty, Walt Rugland, Renee Boldt, Kim Ritzow, and Karen Laws. The committee and the library trustees had developed a menu of naming rights opportunities which would allow donors to have the potential to name different spaces within the library. The new library would have several “stunning” major spaces, but there were also smaller spaces such a study rooms. She said that one of the really special things about the building was going to be the natural light and the windows, and there was going to be an opportunity for smaller donors to attach their names to windows.
She said that currently they were in the “quiet phase” of the fundraising campaign which was focused on lead gifts. The quiet phase would last until they got to about 80% of their $12 million goal. During the feasibility study that had been conducted last year, they spoke with potential donors and had been able to identify donations that would cover 80% of the $12 million, which was why they felt comfortable going forward with the campaign.
They were hoping to achieve that goal and be able to transition to the public phase of the campaign around the turn of the year. At that point they would bring out a public website and hold events. She thought a lot of the lead donors would want to play a visible role in encouraging others to support the project.
The Friends were working with A-to-Z Marketing on the campaign materials, and everything was going well in terms of the capital campaign.
She finished up by saying they were circling back to the donors they had talked with a year ago during the feasibility study. “So far, everybody is committing at the level that they had shared with us, and so we’re really comforted by that.”
She went on to give a brief update on the temporary library location. She said the community was loving the space, and they had received a lot of positive feedback. The old library was 88,000 square feet whereas the temporary location was only 25,000 square feet, so many staff members were working remotely and only coming in a couple days a week.
The temporary location did not have programing space which disappointed a lot of community members. Typically, the library would host meetings for groups such as Girl Scouts, 4H Clubs, and support groups. Those people were having to find other accommodations for the time-being, but Director Rortvedt believed it would be worth it in the end when the new library became available in 2024.
One ARA member asked how much of the total library cost was made up of the capital campaign.
Director Rortvedt answered that the total project was about $40 million. [So, $12 million would be around 30% of the overall budget.] She said they had been really diligent in keeping to that cost.
View full meeting details and video here: https://cityofappleton.legistar.com/MeetingDetail.aspx?ID=984118&GUID=138314C4-AB12-4E63-B3FC-4EDDFEC0F3BB
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