Letter: The Kirkbride's economic potential lies in tourism
Here's the deal with the Kirkbride building in Fergus Falls, Minn:
Repurposing the building for development wasn't going to work. They would have gutted the interior, and people actually care more about the interior than the exterior for two reasons:
1. It was a mental asylum.
2. It may be haunted.
The Kirkbride's economic potential lies in tourism. And since visitors will want an authentic experience, it doesn't even need to be renovated/upgraded beyond basic plumbing, electricity, and safety issues (oh, and wifi).
They want to spend the night in an asylum, preferably in the same rooms patients stayed in, with free access to all areas. You don't need to provide anything except mattresses like they have in camper cabins at state parks plus toilet paper, paper towels and soap in the bathrooms. And a gift shop.
The gift shop is where you can be really clever. Think beyond T-shirts and state mental hospital lanyards. Imagine selling miniatures or replicas of items actually used in the facility.
And pamphlets! Pamphlets telling the story of various inmates, of treatment methods, of employees and families and daily regiments.
That's where your second audience comes in. In addition to attracting tourists, you can make the building the nation's first on-site museum of the history of mental health care in the U.S. Put together tours and info sessions and conferences for visiting medical students and other professionals interested in healthcare history.
It's a goldmine, people.
Webb lives in Glenwood, Minn.
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