Just found out that the Lionel Visitor Center will close forever [sigh]. The Layout will be stored or dismantled and scrapped. All the final tours have been booked, saw the layout room and it was fantastic, such a shame, seems the part center warehouse and store will be moved to this location to consolidate buildings. Probably a cost cutting measure. Have not heard of the plans to build a new Visitor Center and layout. Didn’t Lionel always have some sort of display layout and company store?
Karen and I went to the visitor’s center several years ago. Glad that we have a few pictures of the visit and some nice memories too.
When I first heard this I wondered if the layout could be moved without totally destroying it. With enough money, I guess anything is possible, if I was wealthy (LOL) I would move it to the Canton, Ohio area near the Pro Football Hall of Fame. So when football fans travel to the HOF, they could visit the layout too.
Wonder if the Henry Ford museum would be interested?
Greg, That is a great idea, the Ford Museum. [tup][tup] After all, it was a Michigan landmark for train geeks.
I believe the layout will be sectioned up and stored pending a buyer? All the trains will be sold with the accessories as well…With the look at Ford stock, don’t know they could afford it…
Sorry to here that. I will be in Detroit for a three game series in July and planned on visiting the Lionel display and Greenfield village. Just my luck
Mark
My [2c]: I would guess that it is just a ‘sign of the times’. I have never had the opportunity to visit the center but I would think that some creative Lionel accountant would be able to “fund” the center with advertising dollars. After all, what better way to promote the Lionel product line than to display all of the goodies. To me, seeing the actual item in the proper setting does more than seeing it in a catalog. I know that every time I see a layout in operation I absorb ideas for my layout and very often the “spending” juices start flowing.
J. Daddy…Thanks for the heads-up.
My guess is that Lionel is looking to maximize exposure and investment. I would think most of the visitors to the Michigan facility were already established train fans, outside of maybe school groups and tours of such. Which isn’t in keeping with Mr. Calabrese’s well-stated intentions of reaching new customers and bringing new blood into the hobby.
I’ve read where Lionel is opening an office of some sort in New York City. The Lionel layout displays that have happened over the past few years in NYC have gotten much attention and were likely seen by more people than ever went to the Michigan Visitor’s Center. You take a layout and put it in a shopping window display in a major NYC department store and in one single month will have more viewers than the Michigan layout could have had in a year.
So it could possibly be that Lionel will either have a display at their NYC office, or will promote and faciliate holiday display layouts in locations with high visability. And if this is the line of thought at Lionel, it makes sense to me. The public attention along with the media attention from a well-done display in the NYC area will likely have far more benefit that the current Visitor’s Center layout could ever have.
Or maybe Lionel will attempt something along the lines of the K-Line February Days Display (which was one of K-Line’s better outreach ideas) just outside of NYC. Having a New York office would make this kind of event much easier for Lionel to set up and would probably get more exposure than the Visitor’s Center.
Of course, it’d probably be nice if Lionel could maintain the Michigan layout while doing other things. But given Lionel has new investors, I’m sure they want to see positive financial numbers for the effort. A metro New York area company display layout would go much further to this goal.
I think you are confirming my worst fears of the Lionel Parts Dept. and Headquarters closing for good in Michigan. You are correct in saying that Detroit has never promoted a large layout and display downtown which was needed in a bad way. The new owners will probably build a new layout and visitor center located if not centralized with the K line display… just makes sense…
The bummer is all the over stock and repair items appeared here and could be gotten be for a really great price and now that is gone,the fun of the hunt is over, you would never know what you where going to see… one day a 4-8-4 locomotive would be there …next day it might be a Christmas holiday car…it was exciting, I picked up a set of war bonnet F7’s for a really cheap price, in the box…wow!