SLO veterans museum closed indefinitely due to flooding

Jan. 18—A local veterans museum is closed indefinitely due to building-wide flooding and other damages following a series of powerful storms that hammered the Central Coast.

Central Coast Veterans Memorial Museum is located in the San Luis Obispo Veterans Memorial Hall at 801 Grand Ave.

Several local museums closed their doors due to the recent storms, including the History Center of San Luis Obispo County, the Morro Bay State Park Museum of Natural History and the Spooner Ranch House at Montaña de Oro State Park near Los Osos.

The Pismo State Beach Monarch Grove was expected to reopen on Wednesday, according to the Central Coast State Parks Association.

SLO veterans museum closed due to flooding

Bart Topham, president and director of the Central Coast Veterans Memorial Museum, went to the museum on Jan. 9 to survey the storm damage.

He spent some time on Friday afternoon looking at video footage of the museum.

Topham said that if the water got worse he would drive to the museum and figure out issues as they came.

According to Topham, humidity and moisture from the flooding poses a concern as there is a risk of mold and damage to artifacts dating back to World War I.

It will be weeks before the museum is aware of the extent of the damage, Topham said.

U.S. Navy veteran Steve David, who has volunteered at the veterans museum since November 2021, spent several hours on Jan. 11 removing soaked carpet with a box cutter and depositing it in the garbage.

Around a dozen volunteers have taken turns cleaning up water and addressing damages.

The Central Coast Veterans Memorial Museum organized a GoFundMe fundraiser to help pay for flood recovery efforts.

As of Tuesday evening, the nonprofit organization had raised $2,490 toward a $5,000 goal. But that won't be enough to fund all the needed repairs.

"Damage repair costs are expected to reach around $15,000 to $20,000 but may end up costing more," Topham said.

David said the museum will use the cleanup as an opportunity to clear up older artifacts and better organize exhibits.

The flood damage comes about two months after the museum unveiled a newly revised World War II display in December, just in time for the 81st anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor.

The exhibit added a new artifact to the museum's collection, a piece of the historic USS Arizona. The ship sank in Pearl Harbor after being attacked by the Japanese on Dec. 7, 1941.

SLO art museum sees wind damage, leaky roof

Although some local museums escaped the storms without damage, the San Luis Obispo Museum of Art had a leak in its roof that was temporarily repaired, according to executive director Leann Standish.

In addition, an art installation on the lawn of the museum was damaged by high winds on Monday, when gusts were forecast to reach 60 mph.

"Storied Waters: Dreams of Bayanihan" by Camille Hoffman features multiple glass panels with illustrations that represent Filipinx in America.

"One of the panels was dislodged," said Standish, who previously worked at the Perez Art Museum in Miami Beach.

"We all have to plan for much more amplified weather experiences. It just feels like we get everything all at once and then nothing at all," sStandish said. "As our buildings evolve and protocols evolve, we have to assume that there will be more and more of these dramatic weather events."

A grant from the Harold J. Miossi Charitable Trust in 2020 allowed SLOMA to get a new roof for the building.

"Otherwise it would have been catastrophic for us," Standish said.

Although San Luis Obispo Creek is located hundreds of yards from the museum, it did not sustain any other large damages, she said.

Standish noted that the musuem has water monitors to notify officials of flooding.

___

(c)2023 The Tribune (San Luis Obispo, Calif.)

Visit The Tribune (San Luis Obispo, Calif.) at www.sanluisobispo.com

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.