St. Louis (AP) – A nonprofit coordinating a $380-million renovation of the Gateway Arch grounds in St. Louis says it has reached its fundraising goal of $250 million.
The CityArchRiver Foundation says it will use $221 million toward construction costs. The additional $29 million will go to an endowment meant to maintain and operate the park.
The ambitious renovation includes a planned 46,000-square-foot expansion of the visitor center and a redesigned, modernized Museum of Westward Expansion. Both are underneath the monument.
The makeover also includes creating a park atop a concrete-and-steel lid being built over a freeway between the Arch and the city’s downtown, thereby expanding the green space.
The renovation also is funded with more than $150 million from a regional sales tax initiative, federal grants, state highway funds and other sources.