TOMAQUAG MUSEUM CONSIDERING MOVE
TO WESTERLY
By
Dale P. Faulkner Sun Staff Writer
Westerly
could become the new home of the Tomaquag Museum.
Currently
located in a leased house in the Arcadia Village of Exeter, the Native
American museum has long hoped for a large space that is specifically
designed as a museum. For the past 1 1/2 years, the museum has been
working with the Westerly Land Trust, discussing a possible
collaboration that could involve the museum building on one of the
trust's parcels.
"We've
outgrown our space as we've matured as an organization," said
Loren Spears, the museum's executive director...
While
a new home remains something of a dream, the museum is taking concrete
steps toward its goal. A $32,000 grant from the Lattner
Foundation was used to hire Oyster Works LLC,
a Charlestown architectural firm, which developed a master plan.
The plan was unveiled in October during the museum's annual
Honoring Dinner...
Spears
estimated another two to three years will be spent on the
pre-construction period, a phase she said is likely to cost about
$400,000 before it is completed. Initial estimates indicate the
museum building, including an amphitheater and story gallery, will cost
about $5 million...
"The museum is all about the story. The story of
contemporary and Native Americans and their history," Spears
said...
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