New visitors center to open at foot of Centennial Bridge in Rock Island

By Doug Schorpp | Thursday, May 15, 2008

Quad-City residents who find themselves planning excursions for out-of-town visitors soon will have two more places to add to the itinerary.

At Wednesday's Destination Quad-Cities Breakfast, attendees learned that a new visitors center will open next week at the base of the Centennial Bridge in Rock Island. Joe Taylor, president of the Quad-Cities Convention & Visitors Bureau, said the city used an $86,000 Preserve America grant to transform the old Centennial Bridge Commission building into a destination point focusing primarily on the Mississippi River. It will house display cases about river transportation and the history of local bridges, including the Centennial.

Plans also are under way to remodel the first floor of the current visitors center at Davenport’s Union Station to house an upgraded and permanent tourist and visitors center. It is not expected to open until next spring.

The cities of Davenport and Rock Island renovated the buildings owned by each municipality. The  visitors bureau operates and staffs both centers, Taylor said.