NEON MUSEUM IN LAS VEGAS ANNOUNCES EXPANSION
For the first time since opening, the Neon Museum has purchased additional land to allow for its first significant expansion. The purchase of the parcel, which occupies .27 acres adjacent to the existing Neon Boneyard and La Concha visitor’s center, was made possible thanks in part to a $425,000 grant from the City of Las Vegas. Once construction is complete later this year, the new outdoor exhibit area and events center will host a variety of private events and public programs.
The expanded Neon Museum space will house 30 signs not currently on view, including those from the Las Vegas Club, Spearmint Rhino, Longhorn Casino, Sahara Saloon, Opera House Saloon and Riviera. Many of these signs have been held in the museum’s storage facility due to lack of available space at the existing Neon Boneyard.
SH Architecture designed the new enclosed, open-air exhibit and events space to be constructed on the new parcel. Incorporating Midcentury Modern design motifs such as a cantilevered roof, decorative concrete block and stacked stone, the space will integrate seamlessly with the adjacent Googie architecture of the La Concha motel lobby, which houses the museum’s visitor’s center and store. In addition to a space to display additional signs, the new construction will add a large covered patio canopied by a modern, solar-paneled shade structure.
“We’re grateful to the City of Las Vegas, whose grant recognizes the Neon Museum’s role in promoting and preserving our community’s history,” said Rob McCoy, president and chief executive officer, Neon Museum. “An expanded museum enables us to reintroduce even more retired Las Vegas signs to the public arena and enrich the historical narrative available to visitors of downtown Las Vegas.”
In 2015, the Neon Museum debuted its North Gallery, an outdoor exhibit space located on the existing museum campus northeast of the Neon Boneyard. At first used only for weddings, photography shoots and daytime educational programs, the North Gallery today is open Monday through Friday from noon to 4 p.m. for self-guided tours by the public.
For more information about the Neon Museum, go to www.neonmuseum.org or call (702) 387-6366.
ABOUT THE NEON MUSEUM
Founded in 1996, the Neon Museum is a non-profit 501(c)3 organization dedicated to collecting, preserving, studying and exhibiting iconic Las Vegas signs for educational, historic, arts and cultural enrichment. It has been named “Best Museum” by Las Vegas Weekly, one of “Sin City’s Best Retro Sites” by MSN, “No. 1 Las Vegas Museum Sure to Entertain and Educate” by USAToday’s 10best.com, “One of the Top 10 Coolest Things You Didn’t Know You Could Do” by Forbes.com; one of the “Top 10 Historic Spots in Las Vegas” by Vegas.com; one of “15 Most Fascinating Museums in the U.S.” by VacationIdea.com; “Best Place to Introduce Kids to Art/Culture” by Desert Companion magazine and earns a consistent 4.5 out of 5 rating on TripAdvisor. In addition to an approximately two-acre Neon Museum campus, which includes the outdoor exhibition space known as the Neon Boneyard, the museum also encompasses a visitors’ center housed inside the former La Concha Motel lobby as well as nine restored signs installed as public art throughout downtown Las Vegas. Public education, outreach, research, archival preservation and a grant-funded neon sign survey represent a selection of the museum’s ongoing projects. Both the Neon Boneyard and the La Concha Visitors’ Center are located at 770 Las Vegas Blvd. North in Las Vegas. For more information, visit www.NeonMuseum.org.