After reconsidering a site in Muirfield Village the state is proposing $1.5 million be given to a museum honoring golf legend and former OSU student Jack Nicklaus.The Jack Nicklaus Museum will be built on a two-acre site along Olentangy River Road between the Schottenstein Center and the Woody Hayes Athletic Facility.”It is not just about the golfer, but all there is that encompasses Jack Nicklaus the man,” said Gerald Goodson, executive director of the museum.Nicklaus was an OSU student from 1960-61 before turning pro. The museum will feature exhibits on Nicklaus, the sport of golf, OSU’s golf teams and its turf management program.Construction on the one-story, 24,000-square-foot building will begin in the spring, and will be completed within a year, Goodson said.The total price tag of the museum is $10 million, with the remaining funds coming from private donations of which $5 million has already been collected.The museum was originally planned to be located in Dublin’s Muirfield Village, but the Board of Trustees approved moving it to campus in July 1996.”The university invited us to come to OSU,” Goodson said. “Jack is an alumnus of OSU and one of the greats from the state of Ohio.”Like the museum, funding for OSU’s proposed Science and Technology Center does not drain the well from which other construction needs draw, said OSU’s Director of State Relations, Colleen O’Brien.O’Brien said the money going to the Nicklaus Museum and the Science and Technology Center are community dollars that do not count against the number of state-funded construction projects for OSU. The Ohio House decides what its priorities are for the area, she said.The proposed funding for OSU’s Science and Technology Center was reduced from $6 million to $4 million. With all the proposals, O’Brien said the university decided to ask for a lower request.”We were willing to reduce our request to $4 million because we can accomplish the other $2 million by other financial means such as bonds,” O’Brien said.Moving the museum’s site from Dublin to campus relieved residents of the Columbus suburb.Ginny Trethewey, general counsel in the Office of Legal Affairs, said Dublin residents were worried about traffic and too many tourists in a residential area. For OSU, Trethewey said there is not any anticipation that the museum will create any unusual parking demands.”On any given day or week, it will probably attract a few people,” Trethewey said.Goodson said parking for the museum will be on the site.Trethewey said the OSU location is ideal for the museum.”It’s very compatible with it being located by the other athletic facilities,” she said.Exhibits will feature a history of the sport, the life and career of Nicklaus and an exhibit for each of the major championships Nicklaus has won.There will be a library in a den setting and a theater that will show movies that highlight his career.Visitors will be able to view a gallery of Nicklaus’ golf course designs.”He has over 160 courses open for play around the world,” Goodson said.There is a total of more than 6,000 memorabilia items for the museum, Goodson said.It will not only feature Nicklaus, but also exhibits on the history of OSU’s men and women golf teams and OSU’s turf management program, Goodson said.Trethewey said the museum will also offer employment and internship opportunities for OSU students.