MOUNT PLEASANT, SC (WCSC) - There has been another set-back on Friday for a museum celebrating one of the nation’s highest military honors.
The Patriots Point Development Authority voted Friday to cancel its current lease with The National Medal of Honor Foundation Board.
A Mt. Pleasant council member says this doesn’t mean the town is giving up hope.
This is a museum that’s been stirring up controversy for months now. Before Friday’s vote, there was debate over designs for the building and in October the foundation decided to explore alternative locations by opening a nationwide search.
This doesn’t cancel the project all together, but the foundation no longer has a guaranteed spot at Patriots Point due to missing the Nov. 30th deadline set for a decision on the needed space for the museum.
The PPDA board also asked the foundation to return all $5 million they got for the project back to the state of South Carolina.
“That agreement said by that date they would have to have the funds ready to go and be prepared to go forward, to move the road, to make room for the museum to be built and that deadline came and went,” said Kathy Landing, a Mt. Pleasant council member.
Landing says even though Patriots Point cancelled the lease, if the Medal of Honor Museum Foundation wants to try again to come to a final deal, Mt. Pleasant Council will be happy to hear from them.
“We would have loved to see it and had the opportunity to do that, we are just looking forward to making sure this museum can be built here,” Landing says.
She says Mt. Pleasant is still by far the best option since it benefits the town and what the museum stands for.
“We are going to go back to them now that this decision has been made to see where we go from here. The message they will hear is that the town citizens and council want the NMOH museum to be built here in Mt. Pleasant,” Landing says.
Landing says that Patriots Point will keep the door open to the foundation down the road.
They hope once the museum explores all its options, they’ll once again consider Mt. Pleasant the best spot to build.
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