Building work has begun on the Museum of the American Arts and Crafts Movement in St Petersburg, Florida.
Construction on the $70 million project was expected to start in January. However, permits were apparently not ready until this Monday, May 1. “Mobilisation has begun,” confirms Rudy Ciccarello, the local businessman and collector behind the museum. According to the Tampa Bay Times, the building work is expected to take 24 to 26 months.
The five-storey facility has been designed architect Alfonso Architects in Tampa. Spread over 137,000-square-feet will be Ciccarello’s vast collection of decorative arts from the American Arts and Crafts Movement. This includes furniture, pottery, tile, metalwork, lighting, photography and more. In addition, the museum will include a 100-seat auditorium, resource library, children’s education centre, graphic studio and darkroom facilities. Revenue-raising faciliites will include an upscale restaurant, café, retail store and event spaces.
The museum announced in November that it had signed a contract with Gilbane Construction. An additional $16 million has been spent to acquire 3.2 acres of prime property in St Petersburg’s downtown, construction of the museum’s parking garage, architectural, consulting fees and permitting.
Images courtesy Alfonso Architects
https://www.tampabay.com/news/business/work-to-soon-start-on-st-petersburgs-museum-of-the-american-arts-and/2322785
