Lexington museum known for its popular summer camps gets $4 million for new building
A Lexington museum known for its educational camps geared toward aerospace careers received $4 million from the state to move from its current location at the Blue Grass Airport.
But it won’t be going far, said Ron McBride, president of the board of the Aviation Museum of Kentucky.
The Blue Grass Airport, which also received $5 million in one-time money from the Kentucky General Assembly, needs the museum’s current building which is close to the General Aviation aircraft runway. That building can be used to store aircraft. The museum, a nonprofit, has been in the building since 1995. It currently leases the building from the airport.
The $4 million for the Aviation Museum move and the $5 million for the Blue Grass Airport were part of House Bill 1, a one-time appropriation bill, that passed late Thursday night by the Kentucky General Assembly.
The museum, which has an assortment of planes and helicopters available to view, will eventually relocate to another part of the Blue Grass Airport called WestLex, McBride said.
The plans are still in the early stages. The $4 million will allow the museum to build more classroom space for its popular summer camps for adults and teens.
More than 9,000 people have attended the Aviation Museum of Kentucky’s aerospace camps at locations in Lexington and across the state over the past several years, McBride said.
“Our mission is really education and about showing teens the number of careers in aerospace,” said Hunter Moore, executive director of the museum.
Kentucky’s aerospace industry is booming, said McBride. Kentucky is home to more than 50 aerospace businesses, state data shows.
“There are phenomenal opportunities in the aerospace industry. Many of the kids and teens who come to our camps go on to get jobs in the industry,” McBride said.
The $4 million will not cover the entire cost of the move and the new building. A final price tag is not yet available since the move is still in the beginning stages. The group has already starting a capital campaign for the new building, McBride said.
The $5 million in HB 1 for the airport will be used on various projects identified in the Blue Grass Airport’s master plan, Blue Grass Airport officials have said.
“What we have achieved has been a phenomenal effort between AMK (the museum) and the Blue Grass Airport,” McBride said. “I can’t say enough good things about the airport and its leadership team.”
To find out more about how to donate to the Aviation Museum of Kentucky’s capital campaign go to aviationky.org.
