It's (almost) official: Tampa's Museum of Science and Industry is moving downtown.In the wake of a feasibility study recommending the move, the museum's board of directors decided relocating to that (seemingly booming) part of town would be a wise course of action for the facility, which has seen some financial unease in recent years.
On Wednesday, the Hillsborough Board of County Commissioners, which helped fund the study, will likely hear from museum officials on why the move is a good idea.
Though a longtime popular attraction in Tampa, the facility has seen a drop in attendance; one might surmise it has at least something to do with the museum's distance from other area attractions.
If the move takes place, the study recommends the museum reinvent itself and scale down its square footage so as not to be what the study's authors called "overbuilt" like its current home. It also called for bringing in programming that could draw repeat visits from locals and fostering collaboration with local institutions.
“We are going to work with the best and brightest minds available to truly reinvent MOSI and its role in our community,” said MOSI board of directors chair Mike Schultz, who is also president and CEO of Florida Hospital's West Florida region and will lead the task force, in a statement.
It's unclear yet where the museum would go, though it's largely believed it will land somewhere within a billion-dollar mega-development businessman and Tampa Bay Lightning owner Jeff Vinik is spearheading in the Channelside area.
That would put the museum in close quarters with the USF Morsani College of Medicine and USF Heart Institute, both of which are slated for that part of town, which is already home to multiple educational and cultural attractions, including the Florida Aquarium, Tampa Bay History Center, the Straz Center and the Tampa Museum of Art.
Also unclear are how big the facility would be, what kind of exhibits it would feature and when exactly the move would take place.
But the study does project a 34 percent increase in attendance should the move go forward.
Check out the entire study, performed by Museum Management Consultants, Inc. and ConsultEcon Inc., here.