Gov. John Hickenlooper, Mayor John Suthers, U.S. Olympic Committee CEO Scott Blackmun and other state, national and community leaders will gather at 10 a.m. Friday for the ceremonial groundbreaking of the country’s premier U.S. Olympic Museum and Hall of Fame.

The $75 million project is likely a game changer for Colorado Springs, establishing an anchor for development of downtown’s neglected southwest quadrant. It builds on our region’s tourism industry by leveraging the community’s role as host to the Olympic Committee, the Olympic Training Center, more than two-dozen Olympic team governing boards and dozens of past, present and future Olympic heroes.

The Olympic museum in Colorado Springs makes sense, like the Country Music Hall of Fame belongs in Nashville, Tenn., and the NASCAR Hall of Fame belongs in Charlotte, N.C.

Read more at The Colorado Springs Gazette.