Buffalo, N.Y. (WBEN) - Congressman Brian Higgins (NY-26) was back in Buffalo on Tuesday at the Buffalo AKG (Albright-Knox Gallery) Art Museum on Elmwood Avenue to announce $1 million in federal funding awarded to the art museum.
The $1 million of funding secured by Rep. Higgins will go towards supporting construction of the Great Lawn in front of the Wilmers Building at the AKG, inviting visitors onto the campus and better connecting the museum to the neighborhoods, parks and community around it.
"We are pleased to contribute a small piece to this overall project, and we love that it's going to pay for the restoration of the Great Lawn," said Congressman Higgins during Tuesday's announcement on the steps of the Wilmers Building. "When [Frederick Law] Olmsted laid out this park system, it was six parks, seven parkways and eight traffic circles. The idea of the parkways is to make parks accessible to all. And if you look at the Olmstead parks, including this one right next to this grand museum, there are no fences, there are no gates, and there are no walls. This museum is for everybody, and this project that we're announcing funding for today, $1 million, is designed to open this up as a welcoming mat to the entire community of Buffalo and Western New York."
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The museum is currently in the final stages of a massive $230 million capital campaign that was started in November of 2019. The expansion project makes modern updates on the museum's campus that accommodate visitors while restoring the community greenspace.
The site of the Great Lawn will replace the surface lot that was in place before with the art museum, as the new parking for the facility will be constructed underground. Not only will the new greenspace re-connect the museum to places like the Elmwood Village and SUNY Buffalo State University, it will also re-claim areas of Delaware Park.
"The $1 million of federal funding that Congressman Higgins secured for this project supports the unique space that you see behind us, the Great Lawn," said Janne Sirén, Peggy Pierce Elfvin Director of the Buffalo AKG Art Museum. "The Great Lawn will be a true community space for people to have picnics, play games, read books, or just to relax. In short, it will be an inspiring verdant gathering place that is integrated into the urban fabric of the city we all call home."
The museum, which has been temporarily closed during the ongoing construction, is scheduled to re-open to the public on June 12, 2023.
Hear more from Tuesday's announcement on the steps of the Wilmers Building at the Albright-Knox is available in the player below: