DE PERE, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) — Ground was finally broken on the site for the Mulva Cultural Center in De Pere on Thursday. De Pere natives James and Miriam Mulva are funding the entire project at the southeast corner of the roundabout at the eastern side of the Claude Allouez Bridge.
The most recent estimate put the cost of the project at $95 million.
For the Mulva’s, the center will serve as a way to give back to the community where they grew up.
“We believe for ourselves and our family to give back to the community that’s very instrumental in our early days of living and going to school,” Jim Mulva said.
Jim Mulva says the center will be the largest project his family has undertaken.
“We spent a great deal of time looking around the country at different museums and cultural centers to determine what would really fit here in our community and have a sustaining, lasting value,” Mulva said.
City of De Pere Mayor James Boyd hopes the cultural center brings the community a sense of pride.
“A sense of education to the community, a sense of awareness for the arts,” Boyd said.
Boyd says he looks forward to seeing the area transform.
“The residents of De Pere truly are blessed to have something of this scale, that is not something that’ll just be enjoyed by our residents, but northeastern Wisconsin, Wisconsin, really the entire country,” Boyd said.
Project leaders say the building will contain a 200-seat auditorium and LED screen, a 10,000 foot exhibit hall, a 300 person atrium, as well as a café, gift shop and classrooms.
The venue is expected to host Smithsonian-level museum exhibits and bring in approximately 100,000 visitors a year. The center is expected to have an annual economic impact of $3.1 million.
