Rigby City Council to get Farnsworth museum appraised
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RIGBY — The Rigby City Council met Thursday night to discuss future possibilities for the Farnsworth TV and Pioneer Museum.
People in Rigby have been wondering if the museum building is going to be sold and relocated.
City Council President Doug Burke said Thursday’s meeting was the just the beginning in terms of talking about a possible sale of the museum. He says hype concerning the potential sale of the building has been blown way out of proportion, and that there is much to be done before any decision can be made.
“The only thing we had to do (last night) was really authorize an appraisal so we have an idea of what the value of the property is,” Burke said.
Burke said outside of that no formal decisions have been made. Because there is no appraisal price on the property the city isn’t able to move forward with any plans for new development.
“We’re not going to go without a museum here in town,” Burke said. “It’s just a matter of whether we get a new one or what are possibilities are. We are putting so much money into repairs and maintenance on the building every year, that even though the old museum is nice, it would be nice if we had something a little more modern and interactive.”
Museum curator Cleave Reddick said all he has wanted for the museum was a roof repair. He said it could potentially be a hassle to relocate the museum because of murals that were painted on the walls that cannot be removed.
Burke said if the sale of the property does go through then there would be the possibility of a new museum, but Burke says right now the city is just testing the waters before they can begin a negotiation.
“I’m passionate about the museum, but if we have a possibility to upgrade it let’s look at that,” Burke said.