About a year ago, a museum devoted to Armenian American culture was first suggested in Glendale, and now we're seeing the first wave of designs for the Armenian American Museum, planned for a site next to the city's Civic Auditorium. The Glendale News Press reports that the Glendale City Council was "receptive" to the preliminary designs, with Glendale's Mayor Ara Najarian calling the project "a wonderful and excellent location that will put Glendale on the map even more." Museum organizers envision the institution as a place to host traveling and permanent art exhibitions and theater productions, as well as house a research center.
The museum is a project of the Armenian Genocide Centennial Committee, an association of "nine regional Armenian-American institutions and organizations." The designs come from Glendale-based Alajajian Marcoosi Architects, who created the structure's exterior to be reminiscent of the mountains in Glendale and in Armenia.
The next phase of the process will be to agree on a lease agreement for the 1.7-acre plot across from Glendale Community College that the museum will sit on; those negotiations are expected to get underway in 2016. Fundraising and neighborhood outreach will occur further down the line. The possible museum site is currently a parking lot.
· Glendale City Council gets a look at proposed design for Armenian American Museum [GNP]
· Armenian American Museum [Official site]