$180G grant will help refurbish Lindenhurst museum

The Village of Lindenhurst has received a $180,000 state grant for work related to refurbishing the village’s museum.

The facility hasn’t been open since it was relocated earlier this year from inside Old Village Hall on South Wellwood Avenue to a building purchased from Our Lady of Perpetual Help Roman Catholic Church that's right across the street. The original museum, called the Old Village Hall Museum, was moved to Irmisch Park, where it will become part of a historic exhibition site that includes a 1901 railroad depot.

The State and Municipal Facilities Program grant will be used for the historical preservation of the museum building, which was originally a residence dating to the early 1900s, said village clerk-treasurer Shawn Cullinane.

The money will go toward interior renovations, creating handicap access and capital improvements that could include a new roof, Cullinane said.

Costs likely will run to hundreds of thousands of dollars, he said, on top of the $350,000 spent to purchase the building. He said the village historical society is contributing $75,000 toward the effort, with a pledge to continue to fundraise for additional assistance.