Renovation of Pink Palace mansion begins next month

The $4 million first phase of the Memphis Pink Palace Family of Museums’ $25 million master plan is set to get underway in November, as S.W. Haney pulled a permit for the work in early October. Construction will take place inside the historic mansion, which will close during the work, but the museum, theater and planetarium will remain open.
 
“This is really going to be a fabulous renovation,” said Lee Askew, co-founder and principal at ANF Architects, which created the designs for the project. “We’re not adding any footprint, but we’re really bringing up the mechanical-electrical systems, telling the story of the mansion, and moving the replica of the Piggly Wiggly store and the Clyde Parke miniature circus over there.”
 
Plans call for installation of an elevator for wheelchair-bound guests since the second story of the mansion has not been used in years.
 
“We’re also going to build a Beale Street-Main Street streetscape,” said Ronda Cloud, Pink Palace Marketing/PR Manager. “We received a very nice grant to increase our efforts in our American artifacts collection, and we’ve been able to get some absolutely amazing things that are all Memphis-centric and help tell the story of the natural and cultural history of Memphis.”
 
Over the past few years, the Pink Palace has upgraded its state-of-the-art theater space from IMAX to 3D and renovated its 145-seat planetarium with contemporary software and equipment. The next step is renovating the mansion, which right now is used primarily for weddings and special events.
 
The Pink Palace was originally designed to be the dream home of wealthy entrepreneur Clarence Saunders, an entrepreneur and founder of Piggly Wiggly. Saunders began building the house in the early 1920's, but due to a legal dispute with the New York Exchange he had to declare bankruptcy. The unfinished building was eventually given to the city in the late 1920s for use as a museum.
 
“The mansion will also be used to tell the life story of Clarence Saunders, and how he made and lost fortunes,” said Askew.
 
Construction on the mansion is expected to take about a year, and once it’s finished it will reopen and work will begin on the renovation of the museum. The museum will remain open during renovations, with certain sections being closed down during work.
 
“The important thing to let everyone know is that the museum is not closing,” said Cloud. “We have great exhibits and movies planned for next year.”
 
An upcoming capital fundraising campaign is anticipated to help with construction costs.