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| Colorado River Museum building |
The Daily News
BULLHEAD CITY — At its meeting Tuesday, the Heritage Center Task Force has decided not to move the Colorado River Museum building to the Colorado River Heritage Center at Bullhead City Community Park, “at this point,” said chairwoman Lisa McCabe.
The Heritage Center consists of the head frame from the Moss Mine and the Lil’ Red Schoolhouse, which was recently moved from its Third Street location.
Potential problems with moving the museum building, which served as Bullhead City’s first Catholic Church, include the integrity of the building — whether it could survive a move — and having to clean up the site after moving the building per the Bureau of Land Management, which owns the land. The building itself is the property of Mohave County. The Board of Supervisors would have to approve any plans to move the building and transfer ownership, if required or desired.
Shawn Blackburn, Mohave County Parks director, said if the museum vacates the building, his department will find other uses for the facility, which borders Davis Camp, a county park.
Elsie Needles, Colorado River Historical Society and Museum president, said the current building doesn’t meet the needs of the museum.
“I want to see this museum move forward,” she said.
The task force is entertaining the idea of constructing a modular building in Community Park to serve as the new site of the museum. The modular design would allow for the museum to expand.
Roy Dean, owner of A-Arid State House Movers and Enterprises, moved the schoolhouse and participated in the meeting by phone from his Buckeye, Ariz., headquarters.
He said it would require “a lot of restoration to bring (the current building) up to code.”
Toward the end of Tuesday’s meeting, task force members discussed moving the General Store to Community Park. The 12-by 30-foot structure was relocated from Old Bullhead to the museum grounds in 1992. It served as a post office for a number of years and is said to be Bullhead City’s oldest building.
With $1,800 in the bank, the Task Force is a long way from accumulating the money needed for moving buildings or constructing new ones. Fundraising will be its focus, by selling commemorative bricks, seeking grants and corporate donations.
“There are a lot of groups in town that would help,” said Jim Zaborsky, owner of Village Construction.
The important thing is “to keep the train moving, get something going,” said Dick Whittington, Golden Vertex CEO and president, who — along with his wife Gillian — conceived the idea of a heritage center for Bullhead City.
