KTLA

Proposals Being Sought for Reuse of Historic Southwest Museum in Northeast L.A.

The Southwest Museum of the American Indian is seen in this undated image from Google Maps.

Proposals are being sought for reuse of the Southwest Museum, a landmark in northeast Los Angeles for more than a century.

request for innovative and financially sustainable concepts was issued Tuesday by the Autry Museum of the American West, which owns the site through a 2003 merger and now preserves its collection elsewhere.

The request also includes the adjacent Casa de Adobe, a 1917 replica of a 19th century Spanish California rancho.

The institution was founded in 1907 as the Southwest Museum of the American Indian. The building was constructed on Mount Washington between 1912 and 1914, and a unique tunnel entrance and elevator were added a few years later, followed by a library in 1977.

The Southwest Museum building is on the National Register of Historical Places.

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