The Indiana Dinosaur Museum is opening July 12 with a ribbon-cutting ceremony at 10 a.m.

Mark Tarner, president of the South Bend Chocolate Co., never gave up on the project even when it looked like he should.

In 2017, the South Bend Redevelopment Commission gave Tarner the land, while South Bend invested $1.4 million for infrastructure improvements.

But the pandemic shutdown sent his chocolate company’s sales plummeting by 97 percent. As a result, he had to take money earmarked for the museum and use it to keep his company afloat. Meanwhile, construction costs soared 30 to 40 percent.

Fortunately, the federal government stepped in with about $1.76 million in forgivable Paycheck Protection Program loans, while South Bend’s Common Council approved the $2.7 million to build the museum and factory.

“When George Bailey had trouble, people came to help him. And I feel like that happened to me,” Tarner said in an article published last fall in Northwest Indiana Business Magazine.

The museum features 43 dinosaur sculptures, 30 skeletons, a research library and laboratory.

The 90-acre property sits on the Continental Divide and overlooks Notre Dame University. It offers a park that is 840 feet above sea level at its highest point. Four trails offer scenic overlooks, including buffalo on restored prairie. The Public House offers the “Upside-Down Burger,” a new take on the classic hamburger.

Ticket information is here.

Caption: The Indiana Dinosaur Museum is opening July 12 in South Bend. (Provided by Indiana Dinosaur Museum)