Atlanta City Council approves civil rights museum’s plan to pay off King Papers loan

Plan to pay off King Papers wins council approval

ATLANTA — The Atlanta City Council has cleared the way for a civil and human rights museum to pay off $11.5 million on a loan so it can acquire display rights to thousands of documents of the late Martin Luther King Jr.

Private fundraising had slowed efforts in a bad economy to pay off the original $32 million loan taken out in 2006 to buy the historic trove of 10,000 documents.

The council voted 12-0 Monday to approve a plan to pay off the loan with the help of millions of dollars in bonds.

The collection includes King’s personal papers, sermons and books. It is intended to be the cornerstone of The Center for Civil and Human Rights, which is planned to be built in downtown Atlanta.