Just months after the Arkansas Museum of Fine Arts announced a May 2022 reopening, officials said Monday that they need more time to allow for additional improvements to the building and grounds.
A fall 2022 opening was given as the new timeline by museum board president Van Tilbury during a meeting Monday. He said it also will give the museum's capital campaign more time for the $142 million expansion and renovation project.
The additional improvement options were discovered during the current renovation project that closed the museum in 2019, Tilbury said.
"We have an opportunity to make improvements to the building and the ground," Tilbury said. "There is no time like the present to do that."
The new renovations include removing two concrete block walls from a space behind the museum's black box theater, he said. This will create a glass box to be used for events and meeting space.
"That will be revenue creating," Tilbury said.
He said gallery space will be increased by 1,000 square feet and audio and digital projection enhancements will be added.
Garden space has been expanded from several acres to 11 acres, Tilbury said. This includes improvements to the front or crescent lawn through a partnership with the city of Little Rock.
Electrical power will be added to the south side of the building to support seated events up to 250 people.
"It will be able to accommodate concerts and other events," Tilbury said.
Museum Executive Director Dr. Victoria Ramirez said the added improvements will deliver a building with greater flexibility and functionality.
"As part of the building process you have your wish list," Ramirez said. "It is terrific that we can have more elements from our wish list."
All of the add-ons are guest-focused, Ramirez said, adding that the average museum visitor will benefit from the changes.
The overall expansion is supposed to increase the building's footprint from 45,000 to 137,000 square feet, according to previous Arkansas Democrat-Gazette articles.
The museum has raised about $135 million of the museum's cost, Ramirez said. She said the additional time will extend the capital campaign.
"Those monies are helping not only to build this building but also support the endowment which will help us run the building properly," Ramirez said. "We are giving ourselves a little more breathing room and being more thoughtful about the future."
The cost of the renovation project for the museum, previously known as the Arkansas Arts Center, has continually grown throughout the years. It was first projected to cost $46 million when discussions started in 2015.
A private fundraising campaign began in May 2019 for a $128 million target. After receiving nearly $136 million by the start of this year, officials announced the new target of $142 million.
Voters approved bonds paid for by hotel taxes to fund about $31.2 million of the expansion project in 2015.
The board also approved its 2022 operating budget at $6.2 million during the meeting. The budget is about $2 million more than the projected 2021 budget, which officials say will be balanced by the end of the fiscal year.
Ramirez said the increase in the budget supports the opening of the museum in 2022, and includes increased staff and moving into the building.
"We haven't finalized those plans," Ramirez said. "But we might be supporting two facilities for a short period of time."
The building and MacArthur Park land is owned by the city. The city also makes annual maintenance payments to the museum.
The nonprofit Arkansas Arts Center Foundation owns the art and manages the endowment, which supports the museum's operating budget.