Springfield City Council approves $26 million, phased approach for art museum renovations

Renovation of the Springfield Art Museum will move forward as a phased approach, with City Council giving the green light to a "middle approach" that would allow the museum to add additional features in the future.

The renovation plan, which had grown in size and cost since its initial presentation, aims to modernize museum space, expand educational and community areas and make much-needed upgrades to the building's infrastructure.

The renovations were presented in three possible approaches, ranging from an option that was least expensive and smallest in scope in the initial phase, to another that tackled the full-fledged project from the get-go. The most recent schematic design of the end goal includes an overhaul of the museum's climate control system, a new open-concept lobby and visitor lounge, a large high-ceilinged art gallery, expanded education spaces and a large volume, two-story gallery on the southeast side that will serve as a beacon for the museum.

While the museum commissioned design work for all phases, with multiple approaches to construction, City Council opted for a compromise, which the Art Museum Board also recommended.

What happens with this approach?

With this approach, the first phase of construction would include a Fassnight Creek boardwalk, gallery walk, education suite, high volume gallery space, curatorial workspaces, reconfigured loading dock and a mechanical central plant.

The mechanical infrastructure is a key element setting the middle path apart from the minimal approach, which would not include any upgrades to the aging HVAC system. Museum Director Nick Nelson said the system will require substantial investment within the next five years regardless of which renovation path is taken. He said particularly the auditorium would have to be shut down if nothing is done as the HVAC system there is no longer functioning.

The middle approach also sets up plans for the full breadth of the renovations envisioned for the museum while the minimal approach would limit the possibilities in future phases.

Cost and funding

Price and funding for the project appeared to be the biggest deciding factor in council's decision Tuesday. The complete project is estimated to cost almost $50 million. For the middle approach council approved, the first phase is estimated to cost roughly $26 million.

The museum has already secured funding for roughly half of that amount — $6 million in private donations and the remainder from American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds, with $3 million from the city and $2.75 million from the state. The city would need to finance the remaining $14.5 million, resulting in debt service payments of about $1.3 million annually for 15 years.

Director of Finance David Holtmann said these debt service payments would come from 1/4-cent Capital Improvement Sales Tax revenue, in lieu of other projects the tax otherwise would fund. Director of Public Works Dan Smith said it likely would affect three projects in the initial few years — the design of a corridor project and a cost-share project with MoDOT would not be funded, while another corridor project slated for design and construction would be funded only for design. Council asked for more details about the three projects Tuesday.

While multiple council members expressed interest in seeing the full scope of renovations completed, the high price tag was worrisome. To pursue the full $50 million project, the city would have to finance $38 million dollars, something that would likely require new revenue streams, Holtmann said.

"I think the financing of the full project at this point becomes a little harder to bite off just using our existing revenue stream as it stands today," he said, noting that if financing for the full project was pursued now, a third of all 1/4-cent capital improvement funds would have to go toward debt payments.

In terms of new revenue, the city has been discussing a potential replacement for the expiring 3/4-cent pension sales tax. A newly formed Citizens’ Commission on Community Investment (CCCI) has been tasked with evaluating the proposal and bringing recommendations to council by the end of June. The commission will consider whether a new sales tax is warranted, how much it should be, what the timeline would be and what the revenues would fund.

Councilman Derek Lee wanted to allow the CCCI to consider the art museum proposals as part of their discussion of the tax. However, with the ARPA funding component and financing process, the decisions on which path to take had time restrictions that required a decision to be made now. Nelson said the museum hopes to have all construction documents ready in August and begin construction in January in order to spend all ARPA money by the end of 2026 as required.

"I think there's so many unknowns with the 3/4-cent sales tax in terms of what is going to actually be proposed and if it will even pass," Councilwoman Monica Horton said. "I think that the intent is to kind of secure what is known, and what we have right now."

More: Springfield Art Museum renovation doubles in scope, price ahead of fall closure

Because the designs for the entire project will be completed, Nelson said the full scope would be shovel-ready whenever any additional funding becomes available. Council members also remained hopeful that committing to funding the middle approach will motivate additional donors.

"I am totally in support of (the full project), we need to get there," Mayor Ken McClure said. "But I wanna make sure we get there in the most fiscally prudent approach possible, and I think this does it."

The art museum will be closing in September to prepare for construction, with the expectation that it could take up to two years until construction is completed. While council reached a consensus to pursue the middle approach for the museum's renovations, official financing and project authorization steps still must come before the full council and will include public hearings.

Marta Mieze covers local government at the News-Leader. Have feedback, tips or story ideas? Contact her at mmieze@news-leader.com.

This article originally appeared on Springfield News-Leader: Springfield Art Museum renovations move forward in financed phases