Posted: Fri, Sep 27, 2002, 11:00 AM ET (1500 GMT)
The Astronaut Hall of Fame, one of two Florida properties sold at auction earlier this week, has been acquired by the company that operates the Kennedy Space Center visitors center, Florida Today reported. The Hall of Fame and the adjacent Space Camp Florida were foreclosed by SouthTrust bank earlier this year and sold at auction Wednesday to the bank's real estate subsidiary. On Thursday SouthTrust announced that Delaware North, the company that operates the KSC visitors center, will lease the Hall of Fame for three to five years. The Hall of Fame will be kept open as a separate attraction, although Delaware North will also sell combined admission tickets to both facilities. The agreement comes just before the Hall of Fame would have to have been closed and its exhibits returned to the astronauts and others who lent them. The agreement does not include Space Camp Florida, and Florida Today reports the facility will likely be closed permanently.

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•  Florida Today article