Rush is on to finish $310M state Capitol renovation as reopening nears

Minnesota’s newly renovated Capitol will reopen to the public in January, and state leaders are hurrying to make sure it’s ready for its close-up.

The 1905 building has been closed for much of the past three years as part of a $310 million renovation project to shore it up structurally and restore its century-old aesthetics. It opens Jan. 1, in time for the 2017 legislative session. But the formal grand re-opening ceremony won’t be until fall 2017.

Even by that fall ceremony, visitors might not arrive to find a fully finished restoration.

“Everything doesn’t have to be done by either January or the grand opening,” said Paul Anderson, a retired Minnesota Supreme Court justice who co-chaired a subcommittee looking at art in the Capitol. “It’s a long-term approach or philosophy or vision that we’re adopting.”

Read more: http://www.twincities.com/2016/08/15/minnesota-state-capitol-renovation/