Children's Museum Closes In On Lease Extension

By Marcus Gilmer in News on Apr 6, 2010 7:00PM

Conceptual art of proposed new Children's Museum in Grant Park; the museum would be located underground.

With the battle over the Children's Museum's controversial move to Grant Park next yet over, a new lease extension is expected to be agreed to that will keep the museum at its current Navy Pier location until at least 2013. Fox 32 reports that the agreement will give the museum a November 2011 deadline to extend its lease to 2013, 2014, or 2025. Children's Museum spokesman Natalie Kreiger said, "There are several phases that have to take place before we can break ground. I don't have a specific date, but it'll be in the next few years. While we're at Navy Pier, we'll continue to develop new exhibits that rotate out just as we always have. We'll continue to maintain the museum in a way that ensures it's attractive to visitors and fun for them until we move."

It's been almost two years since the City Council voted 33-16 to back Mayor Daley's plan to relocate the museum to an underground location at Grant Park despite the protestations of Ald. Brendan Reilly (42nd). The decision has brought about a flurry of court activity from opponents set on preventing the move, citing Montgomery Ward's "forever open, clear and free" declaration. Last year, it seemed as if the museum was having trouble raising funds but the museum denied the claim.