Blaming a bad economy, Chicago-area museums and zoos collectively saw attendance dip 3 percent in 2010.
Eight of the region’s 14 largest museums saw a drop in visitors from 2009, said a report released Tuesday by Museums Work for Chicago, a marketing collaborative of the 14 institutions.
“I think that the small decline shows the continuing pressure of the economic situation that we are all in,” said Gary Johnson, president of the Chicago History Museum and spokesman for the collaborative.
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But Johnson emphasized the economy wasn’t the only cause.
The Art Institute saw attendance fall to 1,612,780 from 1,846,889 in 2009, when the art museum opened its Modern Wing. The attendance drop was expected after the initial excitement over the new wing, said Carrie Heinonen, the museum’s vice president for marketing.
“We came off a stellar year in 2009 and we were down about 13 percent last year, but if you compare our numbers to our 2008 admissions, which was a more normal year, we are up 15 percent in 2010,” Heinonen said.
The Chicago History Museum also saw a big drop after special events observing Abraham Lincoln’s 200th birthday helped boost attendance in 2009.
Though the economy also has been a drag on attendance, Johnson said he knew of no major cuts in programs or jobs among the institutions that are part of the collaborative.
The number of school and youth group visits to the museums increased last year by 5 percent.
“Teachers, schools and parents see the educational value in the museums and are stepping up their interest in us,” Johnson said.
Five of the institutions experienced small attendance increases. The Lincoln Park Zoo, which charges no admission, estimates it had 3 million visits in 2010, the same as in 2009.