The Children’s Discovery Museum anticipates a new studio exhibit to open in 2026.
The Normal Town Council on Monday authorized a contract with Ravenswood Studio to fabricate a “Farm to Healthy Me” exhibit on the second floor of the museum. The studio will now be able to complete offsite work on new exhibit features, with onsite demolition or relocation of existing installations slated to be completed by the end of 2025.
The exhibit cost is not to exceed $2.8 million, with the town being reimbursed by the Children’s Discovery Museum Foundation.
“We enter into the contractual arrangements for exhibit, fabrication and installation and even design, and then ultimately get reimbursed from the foundation as funds are raised and pledges come in and as they have the dollars,” said city manager Pam Reece.
Ravenswood Studio, based out of Lincolnwood, a western Chicago suburb, is a fabricator partner of Luci Creative, the design studio the council previously approved to design the exhibit.
The design studio also put together the “Healthy Me” medical exhibit that debuted when the museum reopened in 2021.
Lift the Ban Act
Several residents spoke during public comment to ask council members to consider passing a resolution in support of HB 3687, which would reverse a 1997 ban on rent control measures in the state of Illinois.
“We want to make sure that we are at least talking about it and opening the door to have the discussion about what that's going to look like in Normal, what that's going to look like in Bloomington and what that's going to look like in McLean County,” said Sonny Garcia, organizer for Lift the Ban McLean County.
Garcia added the group will hold a day of action Saturday at People’s Park, along Beaufort Street.
“We're gonna be talking to renters. We're gonna talk about the issues that they have at the rental complexes,” said Garcia, extending an invitation to the audience and to members of the council.
HB 3687 is the successor to HB 4104, a bill that died in the Illinois House at the end of the previous legislative session in January.
Route 66 Bikeway
Also Monday, the council also approved an updated agreement slightly increasing the amount Normal contributes to the Route 66 Bikeway project.
The bikeway is a statewide effort to build a bike trail parallel to Historic Route 66 from Chicago to St. Louis. The program started in 1999, with 80% of funding coming from the Illinois Transportation Enhancement Program and 20% of funding coming from municipalities and counties the pathway goes through.
New data from the 2020 Census upped the percentage share of that 20% that will be coming from Normal, from 30.5% to 30.9%.
