New contributions totaling $2.28 million from the Kresge Foundation, AARP, the Elaine & Leo Stern Foundation and Michigan's arts council will bring the Motown Museum closer to its expansion campaign goal.

The museum announced the gifts Thursday as it continues to march toward $50 million to embark on a massive expansion of the Hitsville, U.S.A., site on West Grand Boulevard.

Kresge's $1.3 million gift will go toward the planned public plaza at the expanded museum, along with renovation of three adjacent buildings for education and community programs.

"The Motown Museum campus promises to be both a worldwide attraction and a unique community space that contributes to the revitalization of the immediate area,” Kresge's Wendy Lewis Jackson said in a statement.

The new gift follows a $160,000 contribution in 2016 to help launch the expansion fundraising effort.

The Elaine & Leo Stern Foundation is giving $500,000, while the AARP announced an additional $225,000 following a $200,000 donation in 2016. Motown's Smokey Robinson is the cover story of this month's AARP magazine.

The museum also announced $55,000 from State of Michigan Council for Arts and Cultural Affairs.

The Free Press recently took an in-depth look at the Motown Museum's expansion plans and state of the fundraising campaign.