The opening of a heavily promoted Van Gogh exhibit has been delayed twice by a building permit issue at the former Minneapolis warehouse where the show is being set up.
And now it looks like ticket-holders will have to wait even longer.
The "Immersive Van Gogh" exhibition takes viewers on a one-hour tour of about 400 of the artist's paintings projected onto the walls, ceilings and floors of the one-time warehouse in northeast Minneapolis.
It was originally scheduled to open Aug. 2, then Thursday, but now it won't open until Friday, Saturday or Monday, pending the completion of a final inspection from the city of Minneapolis.
Reached Wednesday night, city spokeswoman Sarah McKenzie said the initial plan did not meet the city's building code.
"The city asked their architect to work on an alternative plan that included more safety features to keep people safe," she said. The architect submitted an alternative plan that the city signed off on, she said, and the permit should be issued in a day or two.
Tom Ward of Mission Construction, which is doing the work, said the city has "transformed" the way it processes permits. "It's a little bit longer process than it used to be, and there's no codebook for how you build out an 'immersive experience,' " he said.
The company first applied for a commercial building permit in early July, and said the process usually takes two to three weeks. The one-story former warehouse had previously been used as a split office/industrial and retail space.
