The Lower Colorado River Authority (LCRA) and the City of Cuero awarded a $50,000 grant to The Chisholm Trail Heritage Museum for an exterior renovation project. The museum plans to renovate the outside of the historic Trautwein and Cook & Day Motor Co. buildings in downtown Cuero, as well as install a new canopy and lighting and create a new landscape feature.
In addition to the Community Development Partnership Program grant, a matching contribution of $422,000 from the museum will fund the museumòòò½ÊÓƵ™s exterior renovations and additions. The updates will further expand the museumòòò½ÊÓƵ™s ability to offer the community a cultural and educational experience, Robert Oliver, Chisholm Trail Heritage Museum board chair, said in a LCRA press release.
The completed renovated space will provide 14,000 square feet of exhibit and community space and help the museum continue its mission of historic preservation in South Central Texas.
òòò½ÊÓƵœThe work is part of a larger project to renovate the museum area and develop new exhibit space that will broaden the museumòòò½ÊÓƵ™s cultural outreach and programming, including adding three new exhibit galleries: Paying Tribute to Native American Plains Indians, Expressions in Western Art and the Texas Room,òòò½ÊÓƵ according to the press release.
The exhibits developed through the grant will offer students from various school districts across South Central Texas a òòò½ÊÓƵœhigh-caliberòòò½ÊÓƵ educational experience in their local environment, Oliver said. The museum has worked to provide on-site tours and educational programs to area students and hope the grant will further their abilities to do so.
The Chisholm Trail Heritage Museum provides historical exhibits and experiences to community members across the region and attracts visitors who engage with surrounding businesses, Phil Wilson, LCRA general manager, said in the press release. The $50,000 grant will aid in the museumòòò½ÊÓƵ™s efforts to attract visitors and boost the surrounding economy.
The exterior renovations will help to revitalize Cueroòòò½ÊÓƵ™s historic district as well, Oliver said. The Trautwein building was built around 1894 and the Cook & Day Motor Co. around 1921. Both buildings were given to the museum in 2020.
The museum will add new sidewalks, LED historic lamp posts, updated storefront glass with UV protection and drought-tolerant landscaping through their work with LCRA and the City of Cuero.
òòò½ÊÓƵœThe community grant is one of 37 grants awarded recently through LCRAòòò½ÊÓƵ™s Community Development Partnership Program, which helps volunteer fire departments, local governments, emergency responders and nonprofit organizations fund eligible capital improvement projects in LCRAòòò½ÊÓƵ™s wholesale electric, water and transmission service areas,òòò½ÊÓƵ according to the press release. òòò½ÊÓƵœThe program is part of LCRAòòò½ÊÓƵ™s effort to give back to the communities it serves. The City of Cuero is one of LCRAòòò½ÊÓƵ™s wholesale electric customers and is a partner in the grant program.òòò½ÊÓƵ
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