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Sports Museum of America is put on hiatus
Philip Schwalb, CEO of the 10-month-old Sports Museum of America in lower Manhattan, called Friday to confirm it would be the facility’s final day of operation.
For now.
“There’s some ray of light,’’ he said. “I don’t think this is a fait accompli.’’
Schwalb hopes to sell the place for about $10 million in the next two or three weeks to avoid bankruptcy, which would void the museum’s existing deals, including one as the home of the Heisman Trophy.
What went wrong? Schwalb said it wasn’t the economy or the attraction or even the ticket price, which he acknowledged opened too high at $27 for adults before eventually being lowered to $16.
Schwalb said going over budget by $6 million cost financial “wiggle room’’ that would have allowed for more marketing. A survey suggested 95 percent of New York City residents were not aware of the museum's existence.
The museum was on pace for about 125,000 visitors in its first year, less than half its break-even figure.
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