116 3rd St SE
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Final moving of Czech museum won’t start till Wednesday
Jul. 25, 2011 6:35 pm
CEDAR RAPIDS- The flood-damaged National Czech and Slovak Museum should slide into its final resting place this week. But the move didn't start Monday as predicted.
Rain and other delays held up the original relocation of the building several months ago. And the stormy weather this weekend is the reason the final step didn't start on schedule.
The 1,700 ton museum is at the right height needed to begin the process of sliding it onto its new foundation. But the rain delayed preparations so much it just wasn't ready to go on Monday. Museum spokesperson Diana Baculis said everything needs to slide into place with no more than a quarter of an inch to spare.
“Adjustments can be made (during the moving) but they have to be very, very small. They'd rather slide it and land it perfectly,” Baculis said.
Museum officials believe the building will begin sliding on the steel rails into its final position sometime Wednesday. And that sliding process will be even slower than the time it took to move the building on those dolly wheels.
The hydraulic rams needed for the final moving will shove the building no more than 50 feet in a single day.
Equipment is in place to slide the National Czech and Slovak Museum onto its new foundation. Rain over the weekend cancelled the move on Monday. (Randy Dircks / SourceMedia Group News)