Deaton, Watkins voice support for museum
MU Chancellor Brady Deaton and Columbia City Manager Bill Watkins issued a joint release today expressing their support for keeping the State Historical Society of Missouri in Columbia.
Click here to view the release.
SHS currently has a museum in the basement of Ellis Library at MU, but longtime concerns about space and accessibility to the museum set plans in motion to find a new location for the facility.
The city and SHS had long planned to build a new museum on property directly northwest of campus, which is bordered by Elm St. on the south, Locust St. on the north and Fifth and Sixth streets on the west and east, respectively. The property -- which contains Bengal's Bar and Grill, a laundromat and a private residence -- is owned by various private individuals, who expressed intentions to remain on the property.
According to a Mar. 29 report by the Columbia Daily Tribune, a real estate broker contacted the property owners on Friday and said the parties had found a new location.
The City Council will discuss this matter during a dinner this evening at City Hall, which begins at 5:45 p.m. and is located at 701 E. Broadway.
