Centre Pompidou Mulls Another Satellite Museum

Paris’s Centre Pompidou is considering launching a satellite location in the city of Libourne, located in France’s south west, Le Figaro reports. The proposed Libourne outpost would mirror plans already well on their way for a Centre Pompidou satellite in Malaga, Spain.

The Malaga outpost will open in March 2015 and will run for an initial period of five years (see The Centre Pompidou Pops Up in Málaga). The Libourne satellite would reportedly have the potential of being renewed for an additional two years after its initial five year run.

The city hosted a mobile version of the Centre Pompidou during the winter of 2012-2013. That installation attracted 50,000 visitors in its short run, a figure which has local officials excited about the possibility of the growing tourism industry in the region, should the museum choose Libourne for its next outpost.

According to the city’s mayor Philippe Buisson, the museum would be held in a 40,000-square-meter building, which housed a military academy until 2009. But, the renovations required come with a hefty price tag. The mayor estimates that €5.8 million will be needed to make the facility museum-ready. Operating costs are estimated to run on a range of €230,000–306,000 per year.

The city will be able to foot an estimated €1 million of the construction costs. The mayor has also reached out to regional and national authorities to seek financial assistance for the project, which he hopes will play a hand in revitalizing the region. Speaking to Sud-Ouest, however, he was adamant that the government could not be alone in sponsoring the initiative. Private sponsors and patrons, he claims, will be essential in raising the funds needed.


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