LOMITA : Fund Drive Under Way for Railroad Museum

Supporters of the Lomita Railroad Museum started a formal campaign this week to raise $4.8 million to expand the attraction.

Organizers said they hope to use donations to finance the addition of three buildings, several exhibits, a water tower, a landscaped courtyard and a parking lot. Fund raising for the project is expected to last three years, and construction could be completed by late 1997, they said.

The City Council unanimously approved the fund-raising plan Monday night.

The project will rely heavily on corporate sponsorships and grants from government agencies, according to the nonprofit Lomita Railroad Museum Foundation. The foundation was formed in 1991 to oversee the expansion of the city-run railroad museum, which contains exhibits on steam engines and railroading in the Old West.

“We’ve already talked to some of the big oil companies, and they’re interested in acting as sponsors,” said Steven A. Smith, who serves on the foundation’s board of directors.

The museum is housed in a small building on Woodward Avenue and 250th Street. The expansion would put more than 33,000 square feet of buildings on one acre next to the original museum. The project would also create a research library, a 70-seat auditorium and several new exhibits.

City Administrator Walker J. Ritter said the city pays about $110,000 a year to operate the facility, which attracts 200 to 300 visitors a week. Operating costs would increase, but have not been projected, he said.