Museum prepares for moving party this month in Cedar Rapids

CEDAR RAPIDS – It won't be your typical moving party.

Officials with the National Czech & Slovak Museum & Library expect a large-scale celebration when the building is relocated from the banks of the Cedar River, where it was flooded in June 2008, to a higher elevation across the street.

“We're moving it out of harm's way,” museum spokeswoman Diana Baculis said. “We want people to enjoy themselves here and just have a good time.”

To do that, the city's special events committee will recommend that the 16

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Avenue Bridge be closed for the first day of moving on April 26.

Baculis said spectators can bring their lawn chairs and coolers to set up on the bridge. Food will be available at Czech Village restaurants and across the river in New Bohemia.

Museum representatives have also asked the city to close A Street SW between 15th and 16th avenues and the main strip of Czech Village on 16th Avenue SW between A and C streets.

Bill Meeks, city traffic engineering project administrator, said the City Council will likely act on the closure recommendations at its April 12 meeting.

“We're not seeing any conflicts at this point,” he said.

Cedar Rapids police Lt. Tobey Harrison said spectators will be encouraged to watch the museum's move from the 16

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Avenue Bridge, rather than the 12

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Avenue Bridge, which will remain open for traffic.

He said up to 10,000 people are predicted to watch the move on the first day.

Extra officers will be contracted by the museum to work at the site, Harrison said.

Moving the 1,400-ton building will take a few days initially.

It will be another few weeks before the building is elevated, May 17 and 18, and set down on its new foundation on May 21.

The site will be secured during the Czech Village Houby Days, May 13-15.

Jeremy Patterson Structural Movers, of Washington, Iowa, which is moving the building, noted that this will be the largest museum ever moved for hazard mitigation.

The weight of the building, at 2.8 million pounds, is equivalent to 35 fully loaded semi-trailers.

Long steel beams were inserted under the floor last week, which form  the structure to support the building as it is lifted off its foundation and moved 480 feet.

The building will be raised 11 feet higher that its current elevation, or 3 feet above the 2008 flood level.

Video feeds of the site's progress can be seen at www.ncsml.org