Hopkinton Board Embraces Plans for Marathon Museum

Published by MetroWest Daily News on December 4, 2013

A marathon museum and educational center along Rte. 135 could become a reality in as few as three years, project backers told local officials this week.

After more than four years of talk and studies, the Planning Board Monday night embraced color drawings and floorplans for a 30,000-square-foot center would include exhibits, a hall of fame, a theater, classrooms, a library and a function hall.

The 26.2 Foundation, a local non-profit, is behind the International Marathon Center project. It will be an interactive, educational attraction that will draw visitors to Hopkinton year round, they said.

"It would be a mistake to suggest that this is a one-month-a-year facility," said Tim Kilduff, the foundation’s founder and executive director.

The center could also house lab and archival space as well as marathon memorabilia from famed distance runners including Kathrine Switzer, the first woman to run the Boston Marathon, he said.

Members of the Planning Board said the project will be a "great boon" for the town.

"Whatever else you need us to do, just ask," Chairman Ken Weismantel told Kilduff and 26.2 Foundation President Michael Neece.

The museum would cost between $15 million and $20 million and be privately funded, Kilduff said.

The proposed location is about 16 acres of privately owned land adjacent to a parcel owned by Roy MacDowell, developer of the adjacent Legacy Farms housing project.