The city of Tampa's plans to move the Tampa Museum of Art into the downtown skyscraper popularly known as the Beer Can are dead.
In a letter to the Tampa City Council from Mayor Pam Iorio, the mayor explains that the high cost of retrofitting the Pavilion portion (the Cubes) of the Rivergate Tower for the museum was part of the collapse. Under the original proposed deal, the city would have purchased the Pavilion for $5.7 million, but appraisals of the Cubes came in well below that figure, making it impossible for the city to close on the agreement.
Iorio also revealed her latest backup option (remember, the Pavilion-Beer Can was also a backup option): Building a new Tampa Museum running east-west along the south side of the Poe Parking Garage. (The tan building on the site plan shown here.) The new museum would cost $17.5 million in its first phase and would overlook the Riverwalk.
The plan must go before the museum board and the City Council before it is approved.
