MacArthur Memorial visitor center to open in Norfolk

Posted to: Attractions News Norfolk Visitors
Login or register to post comments

By Meghan Hoyer
The Virginian-Pilot
© January 6, 2011

NORFOLK

A new $5.5 million MacArthur Memorial visitors center will open in 2012, offering the military history foundation more room for crowds and exhibits, including artifacts that have never been on display.

Starting in late February or early March, the MacArthur Memorial will begin demolishing two buildings to make way for the new center, which will double its gallery space for special exhibits and link a new theater to its gift shop.

The building's central glass atrium will open toward the city's new downtown light-rail station, offering passers-by a look at major pieces in its collection.

"Right now, we have almost an interior focus - you have to know about us to know to come in," said retired Col. Bill Davis, executive director of the memorial.

The memorial itself, housed in Norfolk's original City Hall across a courtyard from the new center, will remain as is.

For more, Norfolk readers can see Sunday's Compass community news section in The Virginian-Pilot.

COMMENTS ADVISORY: Users are solely responsible for opinions they post here; comments do not reflect the views of The Virginian-Pilot or its websites. Users must follow agreed-upon rules: Be civil, be clean, be on topic; don't attack private individuals, other users or classes of people. Read the full rules here.
- Comments are automatically checked for inappropriate language, but readers might find some comments offensive or inaccurate. If you believe a comment violates our rules, click the report violation link below it.

OHBOYOHBOYOHBOY!

Submitted by RoosterB on Fri, 01/07/2011 at 8:29 am.

Yet ANOTHER "jewel" to add to that crown Norfolk officials incessantly tout....

2 million??????

Submitted by metstones on Thu, 01/06/2011 at 3:10 pm.

Not taking anything away from this great man, one has to question spending 2 million dollars of the taxpayer's money right now. The Norfolk Police and Fireman have not received a step in pay much less a raise in 3 years and the city throws 2 million at this? Who is running the city?

Pictures of Improvements?

Submitted by EmmettTheK on Thu, 01/06/2011 at 12:19 pm.

Being that this is a newspaper site, it would have been nice to have some photographs of the improvements; especially for us former Norfolkians living elsewhere. It's a great tribute to a great military man!

The MacArthur Memorial

Submitted by wmarkdyer on Thu, 01/06/2011 at 10:30 am.

I moved away in '08, are there crowds there now?

Cant something just be

Submitted by vbbum on Thu, 01/06/2011 at 9:46 am.

Anybody can find fault with anything. Anybody can manufacture enough half truths or lies to find any conspiracy. The MacArthur Memorial was a fitting tribute to a great war leader. It is o sad to drag light rail into this just because someone can.

Missed opportunity

Submitted by dokein on Wed, 01/05/2011 at 1:58 pm.

This major renovation makes it sting all the more that the city wasn't smart enough to route the light rail through this block instead of the one that had the old library building on it. The light rail station could have been incorporated into the redesigned memorial site (increasing vistor traffic at the same time), and city could have reduced the Tide overruns by millions.

But maybe I don't give them enough credit, and it was all part of the plan to get their dubiously-obtained federal tax dollars to finance a very expensive building demolition for the city.

uh

Submitted by atp4984 on Wed, 01/05/2011 at 10:46 pm.

I don't follow your logic, being that the light rail track is about twenty feet from the building in question, and the Kirn Library badly needed to go.