Grant Aids Museum Construction

September 22, 2006

KEARNEY — The city of Kearney has been awarded a $118,000 federal grant to invest in the Nebraska Firefighters Museum and Education Center.

Officials with the firefighters museum will use $105,000 from the grant to construct part of a state-of-the-art museum, while the city will use the remaining $13,000 to cover administrative costs. The project will create three full-time positions, including an executive director, administrative assistant and maintenance supervisor.

Gov. Dave Heineman announced Thursday the Community Development Block Grant had been awarded to Kearney.

The firefighters museum campaign already has raised $1.66 million from individual donors.

Sept. 30, Kearney Volunteer Fire Department firefighters will begin gutting the inside of the former Interstate Structures building south of Kearney’s Interstate 80 interchange to prepare for remodeling.

A draft plan for the museum by Wilkins Hinrichs Stober Architects LLC of Kearney includes remodeling the building and adding another 15,000 square feet. The exhibit space will account for 10,500 square feet of the new building, while 5,000 square feet will be for activities, an office, a reception area and a lobby.

In July 2005, the museum received a $1 million donation from the family of Donald and Ardath Smeal of Snyder to launch the campaign.

A capital campaign of $3.5 million was approved in March 2005, and the museum steering committee hopes to raise all of the money by early next year.

In August 2004, the museum board purchased the former ISI buildings and 10 acres for $450,000. The museum collection was formerly displayed at Stuhr Museum in Grand Island.