Rebecca Phipps doesn’t want to keep her building open as late as the Granada or entertain the high-energy receptions that fill Liberty Hall.

But she wouldn’t mind pumping a little energy into the Watkins Community Museum of History, a historic jewel in downtown Lawrence.

And Phipps is making changes to do just that.

“We will be more accessible to our community, we will be more accessible to researchers, we will be more accessible to visitors and we will be more accessible to shoppers,” said Phipps, director of the museum that attracted 15 visitors a day a year ago and looks to run at least a $25,000 deficit this year.

She and other museum officials are making changes now and cooking up plans for the future, with hopes of boosting the museum’s profile and generating more donations.

Beginning Sunday, the museum will operate under a new schedule designed to better accommodate both the building’s core users and casual visitors. Weekday hours will be extended and Sundays will be reserved for special events.

Officials also are making plans for installing a kitchen next to the downstairs community room, so the building could become more attractive to families, organizations and businesses interested in renting space for receptions, parties and meetings.

The changes are part of continuing efforts of the Douglas County Historical Society, which runs the museum, to bolster the museum’s viability and availability.

‘Entrepreneurial spirit’

Watkins Museum Director Rebecca Phipps has taped out a layout plan for a kitchen to help accommodate groups looking to rent a lower-level room.

It’s a push welcomed by Douglas County commissioners, whose frustrations with past museum management helped usher in a new era at 1047 Mass.

“I admire their entrepreneurial spirit, and we want them to bring more people and more revenues into the building,” said Charles Jones, commission chairman. “It’s a beautiful building, and I think there’s a need for those kind of public meeting places that provide services, so I could very easily see them doing that sort of thing.”

The kitchen won’t be in place anytime soon.

The estimated $25,000 project likely is at least a year away, Phipps said, given the museum’s lack of funds. But she’s already put masking tape on the floor outside her office, outlining spaces that a dishwasher, sink, stove, counters and cabinets might occupy.

The kitchen would be adjacent to the community room, which can handle up to 120 people, or 150 if an area used for storage is cleaned out. With tables, the room is big enough to seat 40.

6News video: Watkins Community Museum wants kitchen (1-24-04)

The historical society already reserves the room for about a half dozen clubs and organizations who use the space for meetings. The society accepts donations — the Lawrence Auto Club pays $1,500 a year — but charges no flat fee.

Adding the kitchen could put the society in position to charge a premium for the space, Phipps said, likely about $35 an hour. No longer would the room’s use be limited to visits from a stamp club or a group with historical ties.

Receptions, scheduling

And the kitchen could lead to demand for renting out the entire building — with its tall windows, detailed woodwork and historical displays — for birthday parties, wedding receptions and family reunions.

“It’s a great place to take pictures,” Phipps said. “We have lots of brides and grooms come in and take pictures on our stairwells.”

Next month’s scheduling change should help market the museum to the public, she said.

Beginning Sunday, the museum will be open:

• Tuesdays and Wednesdays: 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., two hours later than normal.
• Thursdays: 10 a.m. to 9 p.m., five hours later than normal.
• Fridays: 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., one hour later than normal.
• Saturdays: 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., no change.

The extended weekday hours should allow more researchers to use the museum’s archives after work or classes, plus be available for visitors after work, Phipps said. The later hours on Thursdays, a night that some downtown merchants have extended hours, will be expected to draw more people into Miss Lizzie’s Gifts, the museum gift shop.

The shifting schedule also means that the museum will be closed Sundays, leaving it available for special events, such as lectures, workshops or fund-raisers. It also will remained closed on Mondays.

The museum currently is open from 1:30 p.m. to 4 p.m. Sundays, but averages only about three visitors an hour.

“The most we ever had on a Sunday was 37, and that was an event day … after the Vietnam exhibit opened,” Phipps said. “There were five Sundays in 2003 that we had nobody.”