Aren’t you Glad Virginia Did NOT get Sucked Into This?

The Virginia Sports Hall of Fame stopped waiting for its turnstile count to increase. Not enough people came to see the exhibits in Portsmouth. They will relocate to where folks already congregate.

The VSHOF closed its Portsmouth building June 30. Business was not brisk. Government subsidies faded. A new model, a fresh approach to audience engagement, was needed.

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The 32,000-square foot building is now on the market for $3.95 million. Its contents await transfer to various locations in Virginia Beach Town Center. That will happen when modified display cases arrive and other arrangements are finalized for the plan that spreads the VSHOF throughout an area rather than under one roof.

The public dole ran out (remember readers you helped stop the attempt to subtly get state (translation to English from government speak:  Taxpayers) support for this boondoggle that never was.  And when the public money ran out the Sports Hall of Fame did what capitalists do:  Downsize and seek market-based solutions:  “They will relocate to where folks already congregate.”.  That will never happen if there is taxpayer subsidies involved.

Too bad City of Portsmouth didn’t figure that out in 2004:

In 2004, the VSHOF opened a new building a couple of blocks away in the Old Towne district. The $11.8 million facility — Portsmouth chipped in $2 million — featured half of a basketball court, NASCAR driving simulators, radar devices that measured the speed of pitches and soccer kicks and other amenities to go with the jazzed-up exhibits and tributes to more than 350 of Virginia’s best athletes, coaches and other sports-related contributors.  (emphasis added)

I am glad the schools and infrastructure in Portsmouth were so top-notch that the city could afford extra money for a sports museum!

So enjoy that iced tea that you didn’t have to subsidize one more crony capitalist program.  Now if we could turn to health care…