Felicity-John Pederson, creator of a promising St. Cloud tech company, made headlines last year when he brought a full-scale replica of the space shuttle from Florida to his hometown
But Pederson’s company, LVX System, went bust in February and Pederson filed personal bankruptcy earlier this week. Still, the space shuttle project appears to be moving forward, though without Pederson as a guiding force.
The 25-ton fuselage of the Inspiration space shuttle replica arrived in St. Cloud in June, after a weeklong trek by truck.
“NASA donated it to [LVX] hoping we would use it for education, and that’s just what it is going to be doing,” Pederson said in an interview this week.
Pederson said he bought the shuttle replica from LVX, compensating the company for its expenses. “No one made a dime on the thing.”
Under Pederson’s ownership, the shuttle made its way to Minnesota. Pederson said he donated it to Jason Bernick of Rice, Minn., who will in turn donate it to the Inspiration Space Port nonprofit group.
Inspiration Space Port is aiming to create an educational space exhibit anchored by the shuttle replica in St. Cloud. It’s looking for a permanent site before reassembling pieces of the shuttle.
“The site selection process is advancing, and an announcement will be made when a property deal is secured,” the space port group said in statement Thursday.