Elvis Presley is seen in the front yard of his home at 1034 Audubon Drive, Memphis, Tennessee in this handout photo from 1956, courtesy of The Elvis Presley Estate.
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Here’s what’s going on, I don’t know if you’ve heard it or not, but Black Lives Matter plans to shut down Graceland this week, Elvis Presley’s home.
The $45 million complex is set to open next spring, replacing the aging visitor center across the street from the Graceland home where the rock and roll singer and film star spent 20 years before his death on August 16, 1977.
A new $45 million entertainment complex is set to open next year at Graceland. The tax incentives for the project are based exclusively on Graceland’s performance and are site-specific, limited to the Graceland campus.
“It’s the fruition of a long-held dream”, Soden said.
For about three decades, Graceland’s visitors have been flowing through aging, gray, flat-roofed buildings to see exhibits highlighting Presley’s career, a vehicle museum, souvenir shops and restaurants.
The expanded facility will feature two themed restaurants named for Elvis’ parents, Gladys and Vernon, new retail stores offering the most extensive collection of Elvis merchandise in the world, the Elvis Presley Automobile Museum, and a 200-seat movie theater.
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The cornerstone of the new complex will be a museum featuring hundreds of Presley-related artefacts. The 20,000-square-foot Graceland Soundstage venue for live music performances seating for up to 2,000 people will also be used for private events, corporate meetings, conferences and trade show exhibitions.
