Prince’s former home is set to become a shrine for his legions of fans.
In a unanimous vote Monday evening, the Chanhassen City Council voted to re-zone Paisley Park as a permanent museum.
The 64,000-foot property, in Chanhassen City on the outskirts of Minneapolis, Minnesota, housed the multiple-Grammy award winner’s home and recording studio.
Tours are due to start on Friday, and tickets through December 2016 are now on sale.
“Fans will have the unprecedented opportunity to experience first-hand what it was like for Prince to create, produce and perform inside this private sanctuary and remarkable production complex,” the property’s official website says.
Limited tours offered previously
Since his death it had been open to the public for limited tours for just three days as part of a temporary agreement with the city.
During those rare events, Paisley Park guests were escorted through a lobby and into an atrium filled with Prince memorabilia and painted murals. At the center of the room was an urn — purple and shaped like a crypt — containing the artist’s ashes.
Guests also toured through his private office — which still contains family photos and open briefcases left untouched since his death — as well as recording and editing studios, and a massive sound stage on the property where Prince shot music videos and held private concerts and parties.
“It was reverent,” visitor Diane Fluin told CNN earlier in October following one of the tours. “Everyone was very quiet and there was a lot of tears and hugging.”
Another Paisley Park visitor, Erin Goedtel, described the tour as a celebration of Prince.
“As soon as I got in, I felt really honored to be in a space that he had created to bring people into his world and his thoughts and his vision,” she said.
Local concerns
The vote on the rezoning request was delayed as local residents voiced concerns about how the property would bring in traffic, according to city planning commission minutes.
In April, Prince, whose real name is Prince Rogers Nelson, died from an accidental overdose of the opioid fentanyl, according to a report released by the Midwest Medical Examiner’s Office. He died at the property, aged 57.
Prince, who pioneered the “Minneapolis sound,” remained a lifelong Minnesotan.