A century-old replica of a Norwegian Viking ship is too expensive for the Chicago Park District to maintain.
The CPD filed a petition Thursday with the Cook County Circuit Court saying that they don't have the means to maintain the ship anymore. The district requested the not-for-profit "Friends of the Viking Ship" to take over the fiscal responsibilities, according to the Chicago Tribune.
The cost to repair, relocate, and exhibit the Viking vessel would be upwards of $3 million, the district said.
The ship was built in 1892 and was passed into the CPD's care in 1934 from the Lincoln Park Commissioners. A 1920 deed from the original owners, the Federation of Norwegian Women's Societies, gave complete responsibility for the ship's "perpetual care" to any future trustees, the Tribune reported.
Friends of the Viking Ship has possession but not trusteeship of the vessel, which leaves the fiscal responsibility in the hands of the Chicago Park District.
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