Mayor Brown and councilmembers discussed the possibility of the city taking a financial and advocacy role in establishing a Juneteenth museum in Galveston. Mayor Brown framed the city's role as supportive rather than managing a museum: "I think personally that the city of Galveston should not be in the Juneteenth business of building museum or managing a museum, but I do feel that city of Galveston should have skin in the game when it comes to developing some sort of a museum," the mayor said during the April 24 workshop.

Councilmembers and staff discussed several funding and partnership pathways: pursuing Smithsonian affiliation or technical assistance, pursuing legislative opportunities to set aside state hotel‑tax rebates for a museum, using local hotel‑occupancy tax funding as part of a long‑term funding strategy, and seeking philanthropy and federal grants. Council members noted a pending state legislative funding discussion that could allocate funds for museum initiatives.

Council asked staff to develop actionable next steps: (1) prepare a resolution expressing the council’s support; (2) draft letters of support to federal representatives and the Smithsonian to request technical assistance and federal interest; and (3) research grants and possible local funding mechanisms (including hot tax strategies and legislative request options) to identify practical funding pathways. Councilmembers indicated they want the city to be a coordinating partner that can provide a local matching or seed fund to leverage larger state or federal grants.

No final funding commitment was made. Council directed staff to work with stakeholders, including the Galveston Independent School District (which may have property options) and charitable donors, and to bring draft resolution language and funding options back to council for consideration.