Palm Springs Art Museum Branches Out To Palm Desert

The Palm Desert Visitors Center is about to under go a transformation. The city is moving out to make room for a satellite location for the Palm Springs Art Museum.

On Tuesday, Palm Desert and Palm Springs Art Museum officials signed an agreement for the museum to lease the visitors center. It’s a five year lease with five — five year renewable options.

The city was looking for a tenant to save money. It costs the city about $750,000 a year to operate the visitors center.

The museum is thrilled with the location since it provides a chance to better serve east valley art lovers.

“It’s gonna be a mini art museum,” said Steve Nash, Executive Director of the Palm Springs Art Museum. “The building is 85 hundred square feet which is sizable. We will clean out most of what you see around you and turn this all into gallery space, move some interior walls so we will increase the exhibition space of the building.”

It could take until early 2012 for the museum to be ready to open. Palm Desert is moving its visitors center to a smaller space on El Paseo that they hope to open by early November.