Iowa City nonprofit Stories Project eyes downtown lot for storytelling museum

The city will be choosing a winning RFP in the upcoming months for 21 S. Linn St.

Iowa City will be choosing a winning RFP in the upcoming months for 21 S. Linn St., pictured here in July 2024.
Iowa City will be choosing a winning RFP in the upcoming months for 21 S. Linn St., pictured here in July 2024. CREDIT ANNIE SMITH BARKALOW

An Iowa City nonprofit is reviving a long-standing vision to create a destination to celebrate the city’s heritage of storytelling and literature.

Stories Project, a 501(c)(3) organization, has attached itself to two of three proposals to redevelop the downtown property at 21 South Linn Street, according to Executive Director Brent Stinski. Both proposals envision Stories Project as part of a larger, multi-use facility, a release stated.

The Iowa City Council is conducting a competitive bid process for the site and plans to select a winning proposal in the coming months.

“This idea has been with Iowa City for over fifteen years,” Mr. Stinski said. “And the current process at 21 South Linn presents the perfect opportunity to get this project done.”

The effort echoes a similar push in 2008 to create an interactive museum at Iowa River Landing that would celebrate storytelling and promote literacy. That initiative garnered $20 million in state grants before funding was redirected to disaster relief following the floods that year.

“Our 2008 team won the support of city governments, local organizations, the university, and more,” said Josh Schamberger, president of Think Iowa City and a Stories Project board member who led the earlier effort. “We’re glad to see a similar wave of enthusiasm today.”

The nonprofit’s recent Request for Proposal (RFP) application includes letters of support from Think Iowa City, the University of Iowa president, UNESCO City of Literature, the Downtown Arts Alliance, and the Museum of Literature Ireland, which serves as a model for the initiative.

“The things we want to do are already working elsewhere,” Mr. Stinski said, referencing the Ireland museum and immersive arts experiences like Meow Wolf and WNDR. Stories Project plans to highlight storytelling across various mediums – novels, poetry, song lyrics, nonfiction, podcasts, and games – while leveraging innovative techniques to engage visitors.

At the heart of the project is a mission to promote literacy.

“Today, Americans take in stories perhaps more than ever,” Mr. Stinski said. “Yet we spend fewer hours actually reading. A key goal will be to inspire visitors, young and old, to go home and make time for the written word.”

Mr. Stinski also sees the redevelopment of 21 South Linn as an opportunity to spark a wider discussion of the future of the arts in Iowa City.

“This is a key moment for the arts. We’ve survived the pandemic. The Stanley Museum has reopened. It’s time to think of our next move,” he said. “We need to look to the future with 21 South Linn. Let’s keep growing the greatest small city for the arts in America.”

Stories Project plans to hold public listening sessions and presentations in the coming weeks, the release stated.