I’ve been talking about this for at least a year [mb], but it’s time to talk about it again: MOHAI confirmed yesterday that they intend to move into the Naval Reserve Armory down in South Lake Union [PI]. There’s a lot of work yet to be done, but the museum has found a buyer for the space it bought near the convention center, which was a major obstacle to the move. They’d have to completely renovate the Armory, which currently looks like a giant gym, but construction could start in 2010 and be done by 2011.

I’m thrilled, and not just because it was MOHAI that inspired my foray into ship in a bottle building. I think the museum would see more traffic moved out of Montlake, which is a very pretty site but difficult to get to. And I think that the city could use a little more focus on its maritime history, which is a perspective that MOHAI is certainly poised to enhance. (I’ve been nattering on about ships and fur traders and logging for the last couple of weeks for a purpose, people. Learning is fun!) The Center for Wooden Boats is always in danger, and with luck MOHAI could help shelter it from being turned into a Starbucks for upscale Allentown residents. Plus, with easy access to the museum’s salmon-chopping interactive display thing, I could become an expert in no time.

Of course, 2010 is a long way away, and a lot could go wrong between now and then. In the meantime, you’ve still got a couple more years to visit the Armory in its current echoing state for a night of gay bingo.