New Museum Project Planned
Full speed ahead! A new Coos Historical and Maritime Museum building is being planned. It will be sited at the north end of Coos Bay's historic Front Street at the old Central Dock site on Hwy. 101 across from Lumberman's. The new museum will create a cultural "hub" for residents and tourists alike, embracing the full scope of cultural history for the entire Coos region. It will also serve as an economic engine, triggering redevelopment of the surrounding beautiful but under-utilized urban area, and raising awareness of other museums in the region.
The new museum project for the Coos Bay waterfront affirms our regional pride and expresses our community's values. Conceptual plans for the new building and adjacent plaza reflect an emphasis on public service, adaptability, and accessibility. The new museum will have about 16,000 sq. ft. of space to allow us to expand our existing public services and school programs and create new outdoor amenities for the public. With meeting rooms, an archive library, exhibits, and outdoor spaces the museum will have room for school classes, researchers, and a variety of day and evening presentations. Overall, the museum project creates a community "living room" - a place to meet, learn, listen, and relax. Below is a photo of our museum model, looking south.
Planning for the project began in late 1999 with a generous contribution of nearly one million dollars from an anonymous local donor. The CCHS board had long realized that the old museum building (constructed in 1958) was no longer able to meet CCHS goals. Its isolated location, small size (only 7,500 sq. ft.), and poor layout make it difficult to meet public expectations and the needs of a modern museum. A $7.5 million campaign for construction and endowment of the new building is now underway.
The project received a major boost in 2004, when Coos County and the Urban Renewal District of City of Coos Bay cooperated to donate a 4-acre, highly visible waterfront site for the project. As compared to the originally proposed, highly constrained ¼ acre site at the foot of Central Avenue, this waterfront location offered ample room for future expansion and did not impinge upon existing downtown parking space. Additionally, it offers the opportunity to more fully develop our maritime collection and "Tidewater Highways" theme. For more information on our new museum plans, contact CCHS Executive Director Anne Donnelly at 1220 Sherman Avenue, North Bend, OR 97459 or call 541.756.6320.
Below is another photo of the new museum model, looking west from the bay side. This model was prepared by Bob Linder of Bandon, Oregon.
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