In the aftermath of the National Philharmonic’s July 16 statement announcing it will soon close due to a decline in funding, the current leadership launched an online fundraiser to raise at least $150,000 in a last ditch effort to fund the organization’s next season. As of July 30, it has exceeded its goal, and announced that the orchestra had been “saved.”

But local businessman and longtime musician in the orchestra Jim Kelly has another offer on the table, and he says he has the unanimous support of his fellow musicians. The offer is dependent on a few conditions, including that he be appointed interim president of the organization, as Bethesda Magazine first reported.

Kelly is the co-owner of Potter Violins in Takoma Park. He’s also been playing violin in the orchestra for the last six years and performing the role of personnel manager for the past two years, until he was furloughed in June.

Kelly tells DCist that his offer is “an opportunity to do things differently, … to lead in a different way and build a team that is more cohesive and built on integrity and transparency.”

Kelly’s plan requires that the Philharmonic appoint him interim president, and that current board member Harris Miller step in as an interim board chair, ousting current board chair Todd Eskelsen. He also wants Julie Pangelinan, a subscriber to the National Philharmonic, to become vice-chair and treasurer of the board. Kelly has agreed to work without pay for a year as interim president, as have music director & conductor Piotr Gajewski and chorale artistic director Stan Engebretson. In all, the shifts in leadership would save the orchestra approximately $240,000 in the budget compared to this year, Kelly says. In combination with the upfront donation of $275,000, he says this brings about a solution of around $500,000 in cash and savings, according to a transcript of a speech he gave on Monday at Potter Violins.

Kelly says some members of the board have been receptive to his proposal, and they’re “eager to talk after they’ve had time to digest the plan” and come up with questions. He says that although Eskelsen has alluded to wanting to work together, it is “not negotiable” that the current board chair step down from his position and that the board is otherwise reconfigured according to his plan.

He also says that the musicians will refuse to play under current management.

In his announcement at Potter Violins last Monday, Kelly acknowledged the online fundraising effort. “Any money raised is of tremendous value to strengthening the National Philharmonic,” he said according to a transcript of the speech. But “even $150,000 is not enough money to stabilize the Philharmonic and would not be sufficient to provide a path forward.”

In a statement to DCist on Wednesday morning after the fundraiser had met its goal, Kelly said that the money is “still not enough to stabilize” the National Philharmonic, “but will certainly help under new management.” In addition, he said that the Philharmonic is “out of contract with its musicians and has breached its contract with [the] music director.”

Kelly’s request for changes in leadership comes on the heels of conflicting reports regarding the organization’s management of funds. In the Philharmonic’s initial news release regarding the orchestra’s closure, Ferfolia cited a decrease in funding and an increase in operating costs as the reasons for its closure.

However, the president of the Montgomery County Council, Nancy Navarro, said in a statement that same day, “over the years, Montgomery County has provided more than $2.5 million to support the operations of the National Philharmonic, and it’s disappointing that the organization wasn’t able to leverage these investments into a financially sustainable model.”

According to Leanne Ferfolia, the current president of the National Philharmonic, the board has not yet had a meeting to discuss Kelly’s proposal, and they are “determining how best to consider it.” The board has not responded to Kelly’s claim that he has the support of all the orchestra’s musicians, Ferfolia says.

But Kelly is confident in his proposal. “I believe that my independent, comprehensive plan ensures that NP can keep its doors open and also move forward on a solid financial footing,” he says.

“I believe that my friends in the orchestra deserve to continue to play and continue to make music in Montgomery County.”

This article has been updated to clarify that Nancy Navarro is the president of the Montgomery County Council.