Michigan State University’s Eli and Edythe Broad Art Museum is expected to attract somewhere between 125,000 to 150,000 annual visitors and pump $5.75 million per year in new spending into the regional economy, an economic study predicts.
The East Lansing-based Anderson Economic Group projects that visitors to the museum, which opens Nov. 10, will spend more than $2 million for shopping, entertainment and other retail; $1.4 million for food and drink; $1.1 million for transportation-related expenses; and $1.1 million for overnight accommodations.
“In addition to being a first-rate cultural attraction in our region, we are very excited to provide the opportunity for local businesses, organizations and entrepreneurs to do business with museum visitors,” said Michael Rush, founding director of the Broad MSU. “We fully expect to be a significant contributor to our local economic engine.”
The museum “will generate new opportunities for existing businesses and potentially new businesses,“ the report notes, adding that it “is likely to attract visitors with relatively high incomes, high levels of education, and tastes and preferences…”
Of the projected annual visitors, 30,000 people will be first-time visitors coming specifically for the museum, the study states. About 60,000 others visiting the area for other reasons are expected to extend their stay to tour the museum. Additional attendance is likely for special functions and educational programs.
“As the Wharton Center did with performing arts, the Broad Art Museum will become a key cultural asset not just for this university, but for the state,” MSU President Lou Anna K. Simon said. “Beyond inspiring visitors, it will attract and nurture the sorts of talented people who make ours a world-class community of creators, innovators and entrepreneurs.”
Featuring a bold design by world-renowned architect Zaha Hadid, the museum is dedicated to exploring global contemporary culture and ideas through art. With a 7,500-item collection spanning the Greek and Roman periods through today, the Broad MSU will frame contemporary art in a uniquely historical context.
Homebuilding and financial services innovator Eli Broad and his wife, Edythe, are alumni and longtime supporters of the university who provided the lead gift of $28 million. They also made gifts and loans from their extensive collection of contemporary art.
The Broad MSU will be dedicated at 10 a.m. Nov. 10, and will host a public open house from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Nov. 11.
For more information, visit www.broadmuseum.msu.edu.
Copies of the full report are available upon request.