Demolition of former speedometer shop today to kick off expansion plans at Marbles

The museum will demolish the former speedometer shop at 101 S. Blount St. to make way for the plaza, which Marbles is calling Color Pop Corner. The work will begin at 7:30 a.m., today, March 1.

Posted 11:21 a.m. Mar 1, 2018 — Updated 11:21 a.m. Mar 1, 2018

Sarah Lindenfeld Hall

, Go Ask Mom editor

In its first big step toward expansion, Marbles Kids Museum will tear down a former speedometer shop this morning to make room for what will become a "colorful public plaza."

The museum will demolish the former speedometer shop at 101 S. Blount St. to make way for the plaza, which Marbles is calling Color Pop Corner. The work is scheduled to begin at 7:30 a.m., today, March 1.

"This prominent tract located at the intersection of Blount and Morgan Streets will be transformed into a vibrant gateway to Marbles and the Moore Square District, with a playful mural, colorful concrete grid and urban plantings," according to a press release.

This will be the first in a series of changes at Marbles that will start this spring as it makes plans to expand and prepares to host the major Association of Children's Museum's international conference at the Raleigh Convention Center in May. Design of a major expansion will begin later this year, with construction expected to start in 2020, the press release said.

Marbles acquired the 2,000-square-foot building and the .12 acres it sits on in 2013, according to Wake County property records. The property has a tax value of $685,000.

In September, Marbles announced that it had purchased the 16,500-square-foot building that sits on the other side of its main building from the speedometer shop and next to the museum's central courtyard. Once home to Longleaf School of the Arts, owner MDO Holdings sold the property to Marbles at a discount for $3.1 million. The property at 217 E. Hargett St., in the center of booming downtown Raleigh and across the street from Moore Square, which is in line for a major renovation, has a tax value of $2.2 million. (Longleaf School of the Arts is moving to a bigger space, with room to grow, just south of downtown Raleigh).

At the time, Sally Edwards, Marbles CEO, said it was critical for the museum to acquire the building as it made plans for its future. Marbles is part of a public-private partnership with Wake County. Both the museum and Marbles' IMAX theater buildings are owned by Wake County. Marbles, a non-profit, runs everything inside. Marbles actually purchased 217 E. Hargett on its own, taking out a loan, Edwards said.

"We needed to take advantage of the window of opportunity," Edwards said. "This building is so strategically situated for our future expansion that we really couldn't run the risk that it was flipped to another owner who wasn't interested in the future of Marbles."

Suggest A Correction