COLORADO SPRINGS — The United States Olympic and Paralympic Museum saw a drop in visitors last year, but other numbers and the museum’s overall trajectory are finally moving in the right direction.
The acting executive director of the museum is Pam Shockley-Zalabak. During a council presentation this week, he acknowledged that opening during the pandemic, losing its executive director and other external factors have been a rough time since the museum opened in 2020. for the better
He told city leaders that last year the museum saw a net profit of more than $1.7 million, despite losing $1.4 million the year before.
“We reorganized the personnel structure and a number of other inefficiencies. We raised money to pay off the debt,” Shockley-Zalabak said.
The number of events they held in the museum also increased by 55%. These included the Beijing Winter Festival, the Athlete Meet and Greet, Thanksgiving Weekend and the Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony.
“It’s very exciting. So there’s been many, many activities that help turn us around into a relevant image, community support, sponsorship dollars,” Shockley-Zalabak said.
But there was a drop in visitors from 115,000 in 2021 to 82,000 in 2022.
“After the invasion of Ukraine, gas prices went up, tourism went down,” Shockley-Zalabak said.
Before that, there was also a turbulent economy during and after the pandemic. But Shockley-Zalabak and city leaders are optimistic about the museum’s future.
“All of these factors combined to create a very rough start for a brand new museum,” Shockley-Zalabak said. “We’ve turned it around and I’m optimistic … the return on the initial investment is good and strong and it’s already paying back those operating dollars.”
Shockley-Zalabak also hopes to see a rebound in tourism this summer, and she expects the number of visitors to increase.
The museum has also seen an increase in the number of students taking part in a program called ‘Become Your Personal Best.’
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