COLORADO SPRINGS — The first and only United States Olympic and Paralympic Museum, located in downtown Colorado Springs, was supposed to open its doors by Memorial Day. Now, the museum has an opening date set for the end of July with different safety and social distancing measures in place.
After the COVID-19 pandemic put plans for the museum on hold, it will open its doors to visitors on July 30.
These safety measures include hand sanitizer stations, timed ticketing to control the number of guests allowed in the building, and some high-tech features that will limit touching.
The museum features high-tech exhibits honoring the history of the United States Olympic and Paralympic movement, while celebrating the achievements of its athletes. There will be 12 galleries featured in the museum that will go through an Olympic or Paralympic athlete's journey.
It broke ground in June of 2017 and is now getting its final touches, like some landscaping on the outside and some power washing on the inside.
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In one of those exhibits, you'll get to see different Olympic torches up close. There are screens you can use to navigate the exhibits and to cut down on touching, each guest will get a complimentary stylus.
"The guest experience here at the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Museum is going to be a really wonderful and high-tech experience," said Peter Maiurro, a spokesperson for the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Museum. "[It has] lots of interactive technology, lots of opportunity to see historically significant artifacts, and a really exciting, interactive visit."
The $90 million, 60,000 square foot museum is part of an initiative called City for Champions, which aims to attract visitors to the City of Colorado Springs and the State of Colorado with unique venues. The museum will also have a space for special events and Olympic gatherings.
Originally, it was estimated the museum would get 350,000 visitors a year. However, with COVID19, those numbers will inevitably change. So now, with guidance from Colorado's Department of Public Health and Environment, the board is figuring out how many guests they can safely welcome each day.
Tickets are going on sale Wednesday, July 22. To purchase tickets or learn more about the museum's opening, click here.
