I’d like to address Gregor Gardner’s letter (Herald, June 15) regarding the sudden, yet temporary, closure of the Powerhouse on May 9.

As Gardner pointed out, the community deserves answers. As was mentioned in our letter to the community, the board felt it had no other option but to close. Given our financial situation at the time, the board made the fiscally responsible decision to close so that employees could be paid and summer campers could be reimbursed.

This is not the first time the Powerhouse has endured financial difficulties. We knew our business model was not working, but we did not have a comprehensive picture of why it was not working until recently. Thorough examination of every aspect of operations revealed a monetary loss in most of our endeavors. In the tumult of our closure and subsequent analysis of what went wrong, the board lost sight of the important task of communicating effectively with members and supporters. The board is now working diligently to correct those mistakes, regain community trust and rebuild with a stronger foundation.

To that end, we have been working on cutting our annual budget by half and developing a financially sustainable business model. We’ve made plans for new STEM education programs geared toward children and youths. We are developing a Community Advisory Board, as well as a Science Advisory Board made up of esteemed scientists who will participate in our “Scientists in the Schools” program. We are opening the entire Powerhouse as exhibit space to highlight all the historical elements of the building. We are rebuilding our board and formally training members so that they perform with due diligence and responsibility.

We have scheduled two community sessions regarding what happened and where we are going. Please, visit our website and Facebook page for details on these sessions and other updates.

We are excited about the changes. But we know the Powerhouse cannot exist without our community’s support. I cannot imagine this amazing resource disappearing from our community. I hope you cannot imagine it either.

Kathleen O’Connor, Powerhouse Science Center, board president

Durango