BROWNSVILLE - Brownsville Mayor Lester Ward and his wife Kasandra are hosting an open house Wednesday at the newly renovated Frank L. Melega Art Museum.

The art museum is operated by the Brownsville Area Revitalization Corporation (BARC), as is the Flatiron Building Heritage Center.

The two museums are now both on the ground floor and are interconnected.

"Wednesday night is an open house mixer, showcasing the newly renovated space. We've invited the Brownsville chamber, elected officials and some other people who haven't had a chance to see the space, including some foundation people from Pittsburgh," said Dennis Cremonese, BARC's executive director.

Cremonese said the $200,000 renovation of the space took two to three years to complete and was funded in part through grants from Westylvania, Rivers of Steel, the Allegheny Foundation, the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the state Department of Community and Economic Development.

Cremonese said Lester and Kasandra Ward are on the BARC board of directors and agreed to host the reception from 5 to 7 p.m. Wednesday, serving as a bridge between the borough government and BARC.

The Melega Art Museum was previously located on the second floor of the Flatiron Building. The new space is more accessible. Melega, who lived in West Brownsville, is noted for his artwork depicting the coal and coke industries. His work includes sculptures, drawings and paintings in a variety of media.

"The space is approximately 1,000 square feet that was rehabilitated and renovated and opened into the visitors center and museum. It's a larger space to handle the artwork than we had upstairs," Cremonese said.

By connecting the two museums, Cremonese said BARC is able to offer more hours for visitors.

"Now that we're combined with the heritage center, we have a volunteer from 11 to 2 daily Monday through Saturday and 1 to 4 on Sundays," Cremonese said.

Cremonese said both museums can also be accessed by visitors any time the BARC staff is in the office by calling 724-785-9331.

Anyone wishing to attend Wednesday's reception is also asked to call that number to RSVP so appropriate refreshments can be planned, Cremonese said.

The relocated museum will have its grand opening in September with regional art on exhibit as well as the art of Frank L. Melega.