A new 50,000-square-foot museum is coming to Fort Worth’s Historic Southside. After years of delays, its leaders say the building will be under construction soon.
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The executive overseeing the National Juneteenth Museum in Fort Worth says construction should start by the end of this year.
The museum in Fort Worth’s Historic Southside will be dedicated to the federal holiday that commemorates the end of slavery in the United States. The museum has been in the works for years, championed by Opal Lee, who lives in the neighborhood and is known as the “Grandmother of Juneteenth.”
Plans for the museum entail a 50,000-square-foot campus including 10,000 square feet of galleries, a 250-seat theater, a food hall and business incubator program. A major feature of the architecture is the star-shaped roof, which represents “a new chapter for African Americans looking ahead towards a more just future,” according to the museum’s website.
The opening date of the museum has been pushed back multiple times and it even switched locations in 2024 after a land deal broke down. The city approved a deal last year to lease land to the museum for 40 years at $1 a year, and also commit up to $15 million to the museum’s capital costs. According to the agreement with the city, the city manager would have to review and approve the museum’s feasibility study and business plan demonstrating that the museum can operate and is economically feasible without the city’s subsidy. The museum would also have to break ground on or before Oct. 31, 2027.