Over the past two years, whether due to the pandemic or repairs from a partial roof collapse, few people have been able to visit or enter Memorial Hall because it has been closed to the public. Joplin’s arts and entertainment non-profit Connect 2 Culture held the last event at the hall in March of 2020. Joplin voters could directly decide the future of the nearly 100-year-old structure when in-person take place Tuesday, April 5, on a 30-million-dollar bond that would renovate and expand the building.

Interim Co-President of the Joplin Area Chamber of Commerce Tony Robyn says it’s unknown what the way forward would be for Hall if the bond it’s passed. “I think it is undermined. That goes back to the voters and the city, of course, to help figure that out. There are safety issues with the building that stands in its conditions. There are issues with it where it just continues to be unsightly.”

If approved, the bond would pay for an 8,500-foot expansion and provide seating for up to 1,700.