PRM Revised Attendance Projections

You didn't really expect me to come out and say, " I told you so, didn't I".

I'll just invite you to read any or all of my 25 blogs about the Peoria Riverfront Museum (PRM) by entering  "PRM" or "Peoria Riverfront Museum" into the search box above my profile in my blog sidebar.

Considerable research went in to my blog posts including the fact that almost all museums start drawing LESS visitors after the first year or so.

So the 180,000 is still a guess but even so minus 60,000 admissions fees is a large number affecting the $14 million a year in new revenues brought to the County, as estimated by the two Bradley professors who I contend live in "ivory towers".

Especially since there is no proof of any adequate endowment to make up the now larger than expected losses.

NOTE: Peoria Journal Star reports that only 2,500 people showed up at the PRM last weekend. 2,000 people came on the grand opening ribbon cutting on Saturday, Oct. 20, 2012. Then attendance plummeted to only 500 the next day, on Sunday, Oct. 21, 2012. That steep decline seems to indicate that word of mouth publicity is more negative than positive.

Peoria Riverfront Museum attendance figures include family memberships meaning that a family of four making four visits a year, 16 entries, is still only four visitors added to attendance, not 16 new visitors.

Not a single dollar added in admissions fees. It also means less visitors staying overnight in our hotels and if they spend money eating out, that's still money they most likely would have spent anyway.

So figures lie and dreamers figure, to alter the old saw a bit.