The Wisconsin Maritime Museum is embarking on a major renovation project at its main storage building.
The building located between 13th and Franklin Street will become the Wisconsin Maritime Heritage Center.
Museum Deputy Director Kevin Cullen tells Seehafer News that the building isn’t accessible to the public, but the museum is working on it so it can be.
“What we’re doing right now is to get some façade grant funding through the city of Manitowoc to restore the original part of the building,” he explained. “We trying to go back to the original 1920s original building.”
He says the Franklin Street side of the building will be turned back into a brick wall, will become the Wisconsin Maritime Conservation Lab & Boat Restoration Workshop, and will have a public component to it.
When spring comes, Cullen says the museum wants to build a park.
“It will be a garden space,” he describes. “A 20,000 square foot public green space for the public to enjoy and see artifacts outside. So groundbreaking for that will start in the spring.”
Right now the building is being used to store thousands of artifact.
Cullen says it could be up to 20,000 after the renovations.
The first phase of the project, which is underway now, should be done by the end of the month.
The rest of the project will start in 2024.
About $400,000 came from a grant for the project, as well as a façade restoration grant from the City of Manitowoc and financial support from museum donors.
You can find designs of the buildings on the Wisconsin Maritime Museum website.
