Victoria’s wax museum forced to close its doors
Posted September 15, 2010 5:01 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
VICTORIA (NEWS1130) – One of B.C.’s most famous tourist attractions closes forever this weekend, thanks to mandated seismic upgrading and a lack of cash.
It’s been a part of Victoria’s beautiful Inner Harbour for 50 years, but the Royal London Wax Museum’s owners are ready to pack up.
Ken Layne and his family have run the wax museum for decades. He says the Feds and Province are forcing them out for seismic upgrades, apparently needed for the 50-year-old former CP Steamship terminal. Layne says with just a year’s notice given to get out, there wasn’t enough time to find a new location. He blames a weakening tourism industry for the closure as well.
All of the wax figures in the building will be moved into ‘cold storage’. Layne says it would cost more than a million dollars to move back in and build new displays.
