Building sale pushes back plan for MN African-American museum

A years-long effort to create an African-American history museum in Minnesota hit another setback this week after the mansion housing the museum was sold in auction.

Minnesota African American Museum President Nekima Levy-Pounds said Tuesday's sale of the mansion may not be the end of the site on 3rd Avenue South in Minneapolis.

"The reality is that the museum has a six-month redemption period, so there's still an opportunity to purchase the mansion back [if] the museum is able to raise the resources necessary," Levy-Pounds said.

The effort to create the museum attracted a long list of donors at one time, including Target, Wells Fargo and General Mills.

But $1 million in bonding money from the state Legislature in 2011 was not disbursed to the museum, which Levy-Pounds said made it impossible to pay for remodeling at the mansion. She said that lack of funds led to a successful lawsuit from contractors who claimed they hadn't been paid for their work on the mansion.

"Because the money was never released to the museum, construction ceased and we have this huge issue with Knutson [Construction Services] and other contractors," Levy-Pounds said.

Levy-Pounds said museum supporters were working to find another place to display the collections, whether in another museum or in a new space.

"It's really a sad state of affairs in the state of Minnesota when it takes more than seven years to open an African-American museum that will not only benefit black Minnesotans but will benefit the entire state of Minnesota," Levy-Pounds said.

The Office of the Legislative Auditor is also examining the museum as part of a broader audit of Legacy Amendment funding. Levy-Pounds said museum officials are cooperating with the audit.