More State Money Sought For Museum

VERNON, CT – Ken Kaplan’s stalled dream of opening a massive motorcycle museum and entertainment complex in the Rockville section has received a boost from the Town Council, which voted 9-2 on Tuesday night to apply for $500,000 in state funding to help finish rehabilitation of a portion the former Hockanum Mill.

The vote came a day after Kaplan posted a despairing message on Facebook complaining of chest pains and saying he needed “a break” from the stress of the teetering project.

Kaplan began planning the New England Motorcycle Museum nearly five years ago ago and has already chewed through millions of dollars, including more than $900,000 of his own money and $4 million in low-interest loans from the state. The town has contributed tens of thousands of dollars as well. He had hoped to have the museum open by Labor Day 2015, but remediation costs and historical building regulations proved more expensive than anticipated and delayed progress.

The half-million dollars sought by the town through the Connecticut Department of Economic and Community Development’s Urban Act program would, according to the “Journal Inquirer” newspaper, be used to continue work on three buildings at the 200 West Main St. location.

Mayor Daniel Champagne was quoted by the newspaper as saying “There’s a lack of money in this project right now, so we sat down and we looked through it and we figured out exactly what the cost would be. These funds that we could acquire from the state should be enough to finish that front building,” adding that the odds of the grant being approved are “very good.”

The newspaper story is here.

Work on the project stalled back in January. In a Jan. 15 email to state and local officials and to museum supporters, Kaplan wrote, “We are officially out of money.”

In an appeal for funds, he cited “many challenges, delays and cost overruns caused by issues that existed or were caused long before we were born” as reasons why the project hadn’t yet come to fruition. “Unforeseen cost overruns due to stringent historical, environmental and engineering requirements have requi(r)ed us to seek additional funding.”

In summer, Kaplan launched what proved to be an unsuccessful Kickstarter campaign online seeking donations of $265,000. The effort only raised $12,572 by the goal date of July 14.

Kaplan does have a small gallery on the property displaying classic bikes. He also has a motorcycle repair and restoration shop on the premises, but wants to open a huge museum complete with restaurant, microbrewery and more.

The original Hockanum Mill was built in 1814, destroyed by fire in 1854 and subsequently rebuilt. During the late 1800s and up until the mid-20th Century, it produced high-quality worsted cloth. The inaugural suit worn by President William McKinley in 1897 was produced at the Hockanum Mill. The mill closed in 1951.

– By Bud Wilkinson