Leisure beckons museum president

The leader of Florida International Museum will leave to enjoy retirement now that the institute is financially stable.

By BRYAN GILMER

© St. Petersburg Times, published May 18, 2000

ST. PETERSBURG -- Saying Florida International Museum is now financially stable and that the open road beckons, Joe Cronin announced Wednesday that he is stepping down as president and chief executive officer.

"We were in the black during the months of March and April," Cronin said. "That makes us very solvent going forward. We're in the black, and we don't see that changing."

Cronin, 63, took the top job at Florida International Museum after retiring as executive vice president of Florida Progress Corp. He said he bought a motor coach 18 months ago but has barely had time to use it and wants to "re-enter" retirement.

"As to my plans -- in a word, travel," he wrote in a memo to the museum staff and volunteers.

Dick Johnston, who has served as the museum's chief financial officer, will take over Cronin's role. Johnston, a 67-year-old certified public accountant who retired from Ernst & Young, said he will continue to oversee the museum's finances. That will save the organization an executive salary.

"I'm going to try to do both," Johnston said. "All of us are going to have to divvy up and do more."

After success with the traveling Titanic exhibit in 1997 and 1998, the museum struggled to draw visitors. So it announced plans to stay open year-round, installed a permanent collection of John F. Kennedy artifacts and negotiated to become an affiliate of the Smithsonian Institution to bring special exhibitions to town.

The idea is to give the museum a steady base of visitors that traveling "blockbuster" exhibits cannot provide, Cronin said.

"They do not work as a stand-alone -- that's what we've proved," he said. "They're kind of an exciting thing that comes and boosts your attendance."

Year-round operation will allow the museum to market itself constantly and be included in travel guides, Johnston said.

As part of the change, Johnston and Cronin said, they have cut the number of paid employees to match lower visitor traffic and relied more on volunteers. Wage savings and cuts to other expenses helped to replace operating deficits with a surplus of a few thousand dollars each in March and April, they said.

Cronin had talked to museum board chairman Rick Baker for some time about his desire to step down, he said, and they agree this period of "stability" is a good time, Cronin said.

Johnston's new salary has not been established, but Cronin was earning $100,000 per year, Baker said.

© St. Petersburg Times. All rights reserved.