Friday March 29th, 2024 11:13AM

INK asks for visitor feedback as museum rebuilds from flood

​A fire and flood from the sprinkler system at a children's museum in Gainesville that left extensive damage and closed the museum has prompted the executive director to ask for some feedback.

Mandy Volpe said the Interactive Neighborhood for Kids is at a crossroads and they want to public to help them decide what the next step will be.

"As you know, we had been trying to relocate to a new building... so part of that plan had always been to gain feedback from the people who support us," said Volpe. "As the flood has happened, we just realized some of our exhibits are going to have to change. Some things were damaged beyond repair, other things are having to be transformed a little bit, so before we start dedicating our time, our efforts, the financial aspect of it all, we really just want to hear from what is their favorite and what would they change and what would they add."

Volpe added the museum has been around for 15 years but some of the original exhibits remained. "It's wonderful, but we can incorporate new concepts that children are discovering every day so it's great to get feedback." 

The museum flooded after a sprinkler system put out a small fire in a pottery studio over two weeks ago. Volpe said the INK doors were still closed and described it as "not a safe environment right now" as they went through the clean up process. 

Volpe said they are blown away at just how supportive the community has been. "Everything from the lantern festival coming up next weekend, they chose INK to be the beneficiary of some of those proceeds, to corporations saying 'hey, I've got four of my staff members I'm sending over for the day.' It's just been overwhelming in the best possible way to see the entire community just rally behind kids and education and getting us back up so we can continue to serve the community... a huge thank you to everybody."

An email from INK also listed monetary or in-kind donations, like veterinary equipment or a dentist's chair, as ways people could help rebuild the museum.

The museum boasted 25 exhibits from farms, to banks, to a courtroom and allowed children to experience a community of professions and activities through touch and play.

The survey will wrap up after about a week and a half. Take the survey here

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