By DEBORAH MARTINEZ MARTINEZ
In early February, it was reported that Pueblo would seek to house the North American Leonardo Da Vinci Museum. The story did not say when Tom Rizzo, Director of Artisans of Florence, visited Pueblo but the group did tour the defunct Professional Bull Riders Sports Performance Center, still filled with new sports equipment.
According to insiders at the Pueblo Urban Renewal Authority (PURA), the building would have to be remodeled extensively to house the exhibit. Another group working on this project to attract the Da Vinci Museum is Southern Colorado Science Center (a nonprofit) since the museum will be STEAM works and will have hands-on exhibits.
This comes on the heels of the attempted city de-funding of another large museum, the Sangre de Cristo Arts and Conference Center. This fall, the Mayor’s budget did not offer the Sangre any funding. Previous years, the city council had given the arts center $300,000 worth of support. The Sangre is one of multiple Pueblo museums and was finally given $100,000 in the ninth hour for 2025.
Although the mayor has consistently said the city is in dire financial straits, the funding, for the building at least, comes from Colorado Regional Tourism Act which approved the original funding for the PBR building and sports center. Final approval of this use of public funds will come from the State of Colorado. It is unclear where the remodel money comes from. There was not a public notice of availability for other potential renters.
The lease for the Da Vinci Museum was signed and released Feb. 3, 2025. Multiple media articles state that the DaVinci Museum will promote tourism and bring money to Pueblo and that negotiations are underway to complete the lease. The lease agreement, obtained through a Colorado Public Records Act from the Mayor’s office states that Pueblo is offering the facilities, which will be remodeled, at no cost for the first year. After the first year, the payment will be $142,744 per year.
The planning on the Da Vinci Museum has been ongoing for at least two years, since a Da Vinci exhibit showed at the Sangre de Cristo Arts and Conference Center, headed by Andy Sanchez, Director. The lease with PBR was terminated in June, 2024 but the discussion with Artisans of Florence may have preceded that announcement.
