Corvette Museum To Keep Sinkhole Open

 

                    

Posted By Stephen Edelstein            

        

                        

Every cloud has a silver lining. At least, that's the attitude the National Corvette Museum is taking with the infamous sinkhole that opened up under its Sky Dome back in February, swallowing eight 'Vettes.

 

In a blog post, the Museum states that its board of directors is considering keeping the sinkhole open as an added attraction. The board voted to go ahead with a plan to preserve a small portion of the hole, although it's still reviewing some information regarding the project.

The plan calls for an open space approximately 25 feet by 45 feet wide, and 30 feet deep, along with space to display one or two cars. Those would presumably be selected from the cars salvaged from the sinkhole. General Motors has promised to restore the lot, although some may not be salvageable.

Why keep the sinkhole? The sensational story of eight cars getting swallowed by a freak act of geology has actually been a boon to the Corvette Museum's attendance. According to the board, it saw a 69 percent increase in attendance between March and June 2014, compared to the same time last year. Overall revenue (from tickets, gift shop and food sales, and memberships) is up 65 percent.

As one board member put it, the Corvette Museum needs to "think outside the box." The sinkhole has proven just as popular as the collection of noteworthy 'Vettes and, worst comes to worst, it can always be filled in if people get sick of looking at it.

The sinkhole will remain in its current state, along with the recovered cars, until the end of August. Construction on the new sinkhole-based exhibit is set to start in September.