PHOENIX — Armed with a transformative endowment grant, the Children's Museum of Phoenix is on the hunt for a general contractor that has worked with historic properties to oversee a major renovation and expansion.
The museum has received a $2.5 million grant from Lilly Endowment Inc., the largest such gift in the museum's history. The Lilly Endowment, based in Indianapolis, dates back to 1937 through the J.K. Lilly family, funded through gifts from Eli Lilly and Co., the family's pharmaceutical business.
Kate Wells, the museum's CEO, told the Business Journal that it already has $5.37 million committed to the expansion and renovation of a 27,000-square-foot section of the 80,000-square-foot property at 215 N 7th St., which is currently unused. The museum occupies the historic Monroe School Building that was constructed in 1914.
