http://www.bizjournals.com/twincities/stories/2008/09/22/daily20.html
The approval for a planetarium on top of the Minneapolis Central Library in Minnesota has taken affect. The Hennepin County Board approved the project that would take up 38,000 square feet of space on the fifth and sixth floors of the library. About 11,000 square feet would be just for public displays and exhibits which will promote the library’s most popular and valuable items. There will also be a 200 seat domed theater which will be used for educational and recreational purposes. Not only that, but there will also be numerous attractions for the local students and general public that will occupy the library. This project will be very expensive costing over 40 million dollars. Some of the project’s funding will come from the state of Minnesota who has already committed 22 million dollars towards the fund. Other funding will come from the Planetarium Society which is estimated at 18.5 million dollars. The annual estimated cost to operate the Minneapolis Central Library is 2.6 million dollars a year. A spokesperson from the Planetarium society, Frank Parisi, has said that they are starting their fundraising efforts immediately. They anticipate for the county to raise about 250,000 dollars and are also hoping that the city will contribute as much as the county will. The Minneapolis City Council will vote on supporting the planetarium project by the end of the year. The county, city and Planetarium Society will likely ask for an extension which would give the Planetarium Society more time to raise money.
I think that this is a very cool idea. I have never heard of such an amazing library before. I would love to visit this library if I ever got a chance and think that it will attract a lot of the public that it didn’t before. It will create a more education environment which will be more inviting for students and the general public. I have to say that it seems like a very expensive addition to a library, but I also think that it will be beneficial in the end.
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I agree with what you said about wanting to visit this library with their new addition. I would like to see more libraries adding on more educational tools other than books on a shelf. This planeterium will probably encourange a wider range of people to visit the library. Although this is an expensive project I think it will definitely be worth it. The number of visitors to the library will probably increase, thus increasing the incoming money to the library also. Hopefully other libraries will see that this project encourages others to the library and will also consider a new addition such as the planeterium.
I agree with you! I think it is a very expensive addition to the library but in the end the benefits it will have for the community will justify the costs. I think it is important for libraries to attract attention for various reasons, and adding an auditorium and planitarium. Also the display for the libraries most valuable and popluar items should drawl more of the public to visit the library and see what it has to offer. Overall I believe that the Minneapolis Library is being an inovator and other libraries will follow their footsteps to make libraries more rounded and become a more dynamic places for the public.
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