A commenter at PeoriaIllinoisan’s site gave me a fantastic idea! Given the huge success of “Titanic: Treasures from the Deep,” why not use the same format for Peoria’s proposed museum? That’s right: put the whole thing in a trailer and park it in various parking lots in the tri-county area throughout the year! Think of the benefits:

• It would be truly regional.
• Using the Delta concept, the displays could change regularly, giving visitors a different experience each time it comes to a new parking lot.
• It would be a lot cheaper than a $140 million building and would free up the land downtown for ventures that will bring revenue into the city.
• There is no shortage of large surface parking lots to utilize for the traveling exhibits.
• The county wouldn’t have to raise the sales tax rate; or, if they did, they could leverage the new income in such a way as to help plug the budget deficit.

I’m liking this idea more and more every time I think about it.