Pleasanton's Museum On Main Getting Fresh Look, $300K Upgrade

PLEASANTON, CA — After nearly 20 years, Pleasanton's Museum on Main is getting a facelift. Starting Monday, the museum will shut down for renovation work that will last through August 2, which is when the museum will reopen to the public. In addition to new flooring, paint, bathrooms and other building improvements, the museum at 603 Main Street is being installed with technology designed to give visitors a more interactive experience, said Museum on Main's executive director Jim DeMersman.

"We're trying to get our collection more accessible," he explained, noting that the museum has hundreds of artifacts in storage unseen by the public. With use of small and large touchscreen computers—which are being installed as part of the renovation—many of those artifacts will finally be available for public view. Historical context such as timelines, maps and other valuable information will be part of the interactive digital experience.

The nearly $300,000 facelift was made possible through various private and corporate contributions, along with a generous endowment from longtime Pleasanton resident Jean Jones, whose estate was sold after she passed a few years back, and proceeds are helping fund the new museum exhibit, DeMersman said.

“Jean was very interested in education,” he explained. Jones had hoped her Pleasanton home could be used as a museum site, but the museum board and city officials decided selling the residence to create an endowment would better serve the effort, DeMersman added. In keeping with Jones’ wish, the city mandated that her home be maintained as a historical site, DeMersman said.

The renovations have been a long time coming. DeMersman started at the museum nine years ago, and from the get-go he wanted to upgrade the facility, he said. Finally, in November 2018, the funding became available and in February design plans were considered.

DeMersman’s hope is that the new renovations will result in a permanent museum exhibit that will serve the public for years to come. He said the new exhibit will stand “for the next 15 or 20 years, until somebody new comes along and wants to change it.”