Houston Museum District tells Arts & Culture Committee it draws 7 million visits, seeks steady funding and help with safety and walkability

John Archidiacono, president and CEO of The Health Museum and a board member of the Houston Museum District, told the City Council Arts & Culture Committee that the district’s 21 institutions attract about 7,000,000 visits a year and generate substantial economic activity for Houston.

“We are here today to talk to you about the tremendous impact these people and these museums have on the vibrancy of our community, the quality of life here, and how we make the city an amazing city that it is,” Archidiacono said, introducing the district’s presentation.

The presentation, given by Archidiacono with comments from Leila Cartier, executive director of the Houston Center for Contemporary Craft, and Amy H., managing director of the Houston Museum District, emphasized the district’s size, accessibility and local economic effect. Archidiacono said the 21 institutions are concentrated in roughly a four-square-mile area around Main Street and include large institutions such as Houston Zoo, the Houston Museum of Natural Science, the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, The Menil and the Children’s Museum of Houston,…