We’ve told you many times in the past about generous enthusiasts donating their Corvettes and related memorabilia to the National Corvette Museum.
Just like the ever-increasing speed of the Corvette itself, with the soon-to-arrive C8 providing the quickest 0-60 time in the model’s history, those donations lately have been rapidly growing.
And if you ever worried where the Museum was putting those donations, worry no more.
The NCM announced recently that it had purchased an 8,000-square-foot building on 7.5 acres of land adjacent to the Museum at 150 Corvette Drive for $1.3 million, providing badly needed space for Museum Curator Derek Moore and his staff.
“Especially since the sinkhole in 2014, we’ve had a lot of Corvettes and other items donated,” Museum Director of Marketing and Communications Katie Ellison says. “We have been bursting at the seams.”
The acquisition will provide a dedicated space for the donated cars and memorabilia, some of which have had to be stored at the NCM Motorsports Park or in various areas of the Museum itself.
The new building “allows the curator and his staff to focus on one location,” NCM President and CEO Sean Preston said. “We’ll have room for more collections now.”
The collections, which include cars, racing suits, car parts, and other memorabilia, could periodically appear in displays at the NCM, and the facility will also provide a studio for photographing cars and artifacts and conducting video interviews, Preston said.
Ironically, the building was sold by the Museum nearly two decades ago and had been the home of the Fraternal Order of Police Lodge No. 13.
“We wanted to get the lodge to where it was financially independent,” Shawn Helbig, president of the lodge for the past 16 years, told the Bowling Green Daily News. “Through the sale of this property, we can get to that point.”
The 350 active or retired law enforcement professionals that are members of the lodge will meet monthly at the NCM for now, Helbig said.
Source:
Bowling Green Daily News
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as Events Manager at the time the land was sold to FOP, I voted against it with the admonition to avoid the mistake Disney made in LA with being locked in to limited space. Sold low, bought high, brilliant.
A road trip to the museum is on my bucket list.
Tony, the trip will be worth it. There is a classic car garage next to the museum that has an awesome collection as well. I live 20 mins away from the NCM, and can’t visit the place enough! I also recommend Lost River Cave if you’re game for a subterranean aquatic adventure!! Lots to do in the area!
Thanks Brian,your lucky living that close.The classic car garage sounds like a winner also.
The museum needed the money at the time. Quit being a whiny armchair quarterback Roc. Of course it sold for less back then – it didn’t have a building and paved parking lot on it, which is what it sounds like they are purchasing it for.
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