The Friends of the Shaker Historical Museum levy is proposed a levy to be on the November 4, 2025 municipal ballot.

The levy would make every Shaker Heights resident a member of the Shaker Historical Museum, providing access to member programming, discounts, and a shared investment in our local history. It would also allow the museum to go beyond simply keeping the lights on—expanding programming, increasing outreach to Shaker Heights schools, and preserving and growing its collection. Our city’s unique history and diverse community culture deserves a home, but without public support, the museum may be forced to drastically cut staff, programs, and services

The levy will ensure the Shaker Historical Museum remains open and accessible to all residents and visitors, supporting essential operations while also expanding community benefits. With these funds, the museum can expand community programming, increase outreach to schools, and create more interactive and engaging experiences for visitors. Additionally, it will enable long-term projects such as modernizing exhibit spaces, updating collection storage to protect precious artifacts, and making long-overdue facility upgrades to better serve the community.

For 78 years, the Shaker Historical Museum has been a cornerstone of our community, preserving and sharing the rich history of Shaker Heights. Its collection includes over 2,000 artifacts spanning from Indigenous history to the present, along with more than 2,000 photographs and archival materials such as maps, letters, and deeds. The museum features four permanent galleries, rotating exhibits, an art gallery, and year-round educational and community programs. Each year, we welcome hundreds of students for field trips and summer camps, lead guided walking tours, and host guest speakers. We also collaborate with the City of Shaker Heights and local nonprofits to provide historical research and context for various projects and programs. With public support, we can do even more—not just to keep the lights on, but to continue inspiring and educating our community for generations to come.

For years, nonprofits nationwide have faced declining funding, rising expenses, and increasingly competitive grants. Like many history and cultural institutions, the Shaker Historical Museum has experienced a drop in donations, ticket sales, and large bequests, making traditional funding sources unpredictable and unsustainable. Transitioning to a publicly supported community asset will provide stable funding, enhance accessibility, and ensure the continued stewardship of Shaker Heights’ rich history for future generations.

The museum has actively reduced expenses by streamlining facilities maintenance, cutting fundraising costs, and bringing previously outsourced tasks in-house to lower contractor expenses. However, further cuts significantly affect programming, exhibitions, and collections care. Sustainable funding is essential to preserving the museum’s mission and ensuring it remains a valuable community resource.

No, this levy will not reduce or affect funding for Shaker Heights Schools or the Public Library. The Shaker Historical Museum is proposing an additional tax increase through the City of Shaker Heights, not reallocating funds from the schools or library.

Like many museums, most of our visitors are older adults, but we also welcome hundreds of public and private school students each year, along with classes from local colleges. Researchers from across the country visit to use our collections, and about 35% of our visitors are non-local tourists. We often serve as an informal welcome center, sharing recommendations for nearby businesses and restaurants, helping support the local economy while showcasing all Shaker Heights has to offer. Our annual community events, such as the Mother’s Day Tea Party and AppleFest, also provide free opportunities for families with children to connect and celebrate together. Your support through the levy helps make all of this possible.

The modest property tax levy is estimated to cost $10.50 dollars per year per house in Shaker Heights valued at $100,000, in addition to their property taxes. This amounts to $34 for the average homeowner in Shaker Heights (less than $3 a month).

Yes, museum levies to support local historical societies and museums has significant precedent in Ohio. The Massillon Museum first put a municipal tax levy on the ballot in 1988. Other museums, the Shaker Historical Museum’s size or smaller, in Hamilton, Shelby, Clark & Klamath County have also utilized museum levies to support their operating expenses.

No, this is not a permanent levy. If passed, every 5 years, Shaker Heights voters will have the choice to renew the levy and continue supporting the Shaker Historical Museum's mission.

In 2016, the board adopted a policy distinguishing "Shaker Historical Society" as the organization and "Shaker Historical Museum" as the physical building. While we now use the names interchangeably, we remain the Shaker Historical Museum as part of the Ohio History Connection's historic site network.

The museum’s modest 0.3 mil levy would generate $352,300 annually (for the duration of the 5-year renewable levy) to support the Shaker Historical Museum’s mission, according to the Cuyahoga County Auditor’s estimation.

For decades, the museum has been operating with a large deficit and thus long-term projects have fallen to the wayside. The museum is pursuing a levy not only to ensure our 80-year institution has stable, sustainable funding moving forward that eliminates our deficit and allows us to prepare for the future – but to start a new chapter as an organization and expand the services we provide and presence we have in the community.