Mechanics Hall back in sound voice after COVID hiatus, annual meeting reports

WORCESTER — After reopening for live in-person concerts in August 2021, "I am pleased to report that the overall financial health of Mechanics Hall is good," said Tom McGregor, vice president and treasurer of the Worcester County Mechanics Association, in his report at the 179th annual meeting of the association at Mechanics Hall Tuesday.

The association owns and operates Mechanics Hall, a historic venue built in 1857.

Mechanics Hall began to emerge from COVID closure in the fiscal year ending June 30, McGregor said.

"Our reopening strategy was to maximize the support received from government programs while we rebuilt our staff for operational efficacy," he said.

Mechanics Hall's rental increased 284% from the prior fiscal year due to the hall’s reopening in August 2021, but was still down from pre-COVID years, McGregor said. Mechanics Hall had a net operating loss of $354,000 and also a loss of $256,000 in the previous fiscal year. However, losses in both years were offset by other net income, "primarily driven by investment gains in FY21 and federal COVID support in FY22," McGregor said.

"During FY22, we received forgiveness on both Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), received a Shuttered Venue Operators Grant (SVOG), and obtained an Employee Retention Credit (ERC) refund — a combined total of $1,301,009 in federal assistance from these three programs. This support, along with funds from our generous supporters, have helped us ensure that we have enough cash to confidently return to operations," McGregor said.

Mechanics Hall executive director Kathleen M. Gagne said in her annual report that Mechanics Hall, "continues to find its way forward within a world of rapid change while standing firmly on the foundation of its extraordinary past. The next year will see new initiatives finally moving forward, major fundraising campaigns, and new cultural and community opportunities."

The guest speaker at the annual meeting was State Sen. Harriette L. Chandler, D-Worcester. Chandler became the first Worcester woman to be elected to the Massachusetts state Senate in  2001. She is in her ninth two-year term in the Senate, but is not seeking reelection in November.

Chandler praised the Mechanics Hall Portraits Project, which will include impactful Black Americans of the 19th century in the Great Hall portrait gallery.

Chandler received the Mechanics Hall Master Mechanic Award along with Will Sherwood, artistic director of the Mechanics Hall Worcester Organ Concert Series and principal organist at Mechanics Hall for more than a decade. He was director of music and organist at First Unitarian Church in Worcester for over 30 years before retiring recently.

The Master Mechanics Award recognizes, "contributions to creating a culture of excellence in Central Massachusetts."

Also at the meeting, McGregor, EVP/Chief Lending Officer at Gardner Federal Credit Union, was elected to a one-year term as president of the Worcester County Mechanics Association. Outgoing president Stacey Luster was elected to a three-year term as trustee.

Luster was the first Black American to serve as the association's president.

"Through careful stewardship and exceptional management, Mechanics Hall is fiscally healthy, as it returns to pre-pandemic operations, while evolving into a new era of technology, diversity and social justice," Luster said.

This article originally appeared on Telegram & Gazette: Mechanics Hall recovers fiscally after shutdown during pandemic