New home of Science Center reaching for stars

FORT COLLINS – The Fort Collins Museum and Discovery Science Center’s new home near the intersection of College Avenue and Cherry Street is on track for its 2012 opening, complete with a new identity.

The museum will be changing its name to the Fort Collins Museum of Discovery to more accurately describe all the different learning experiences that will be available both inside and outside the new building.

“It is going to be an indoor/outdoor learning space,´ said Jason Wolvington, associate director of the Discovery Science Center.

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The museum will focus on the Northern Colorado area and its history, geology, culture and green efforts.

“Rather than telling people what we think they should learn, we want to have a conversation with the visitor,” Wolvington said.

The crown jewel of the Museum of Discovery will be the digital dome, described by Discovery Science Center Executive Director Annette Geiselman as “a 360-degree immersive theater half dome, tipped at an angle.”

The digital dome will be able to project any image or show, taking it past the basic idea of a traditional planetarium that allows viewers to observe stars and planets.

“At one point, you can be looking at a forest of towering redwoods,” Geiselman said, “and then zoom in to see the leaves of the trees on a molecular level to learn about photosynthesis.”

The theater under the dome will seat 85 in tiered stadium seating, hosting a small number of people but giving them a spectacular show, according to Geiselman.

“Once the dome is complete, it will be the most highly technologically featured dome in the world,” Geiselman said.

The power of many

The dome will cost $2 million, $470,000 of which is already secured via the “1,000 Give 1,000” campaign. The idea behind the program is that if 1,000 donors each give $1,000, $1 million will be collected, and the dome will be halfway paid for.

“People will be able to understand the power of many,” Geiselman said.

The new building for the Museum of Discovery will cost $14 million, not including the cost of the dome. Funding for the project began in 2005 with a city ballot initiative called Building on Basics.

Greeley-based construction company Hensel Phelps is the general contractor on the facility, a project that Geiselman said involved a great deal more skill than most buildings.

“A building this complex requires a special construction company,” she said.

The museum will include a “free space,” where visitors can enjoy portions of the museum free of charge, including a Fort Collins history section, a gift shop, natural areas, and a café with a seating area, including a patio.

Also included in the free space will be an observation deck on the roof that gives a full view of the Front Range. The idea for the observation deck was spawned from a suggestion by architect Rick Petersen of Oz Architecture out of Boulder, who suggested that he and museum personnel go up in a cherry picker to see what the view would be like.

“We have to have a roof, so we might as well see if it’s somewhere for people to go and enjoy the sights,” Petersen said.

In the area of the building the requires admission, patrons will find early childhood education areas, a live animal area, a fossil wall, a music area, an agriculture area, and an energy and sustainability exhibit, to name a few. The museum will also showcase the fossil of a 42-foot-long plesiosaur, a water-dwelling reptilian dinosaur, found at Horsetooth Reservoir.

The museum will feature a backyard with access to the Cache la Poudre river and the surrounding flora and fauna, as well as classroom space for visiting schools to learn about the things they find at the museum.

Not just for kids

The Museum of Discovery is not just for kids, Wolvington said, but is instead meant to be a flexible space that adults can learn from and enjoy as well. In keeping with Fort Collins’ tradition, the museum will feature a beer exhibit that will give viewers a look inside the region’s brewing culture.

The museum will also have many rentable spaces that can be used for various business functions or other events. Even weddings will be possible in the digital dome.

“If a couple wants to get married on Mars, we can load up an image of Mars and make that happen for them,” Geiselman said.

The facility will also have 16,000 square feet of permanent exhibit space including 5,000 square feet of space for traveling exhibits such as the “Real Pirates” exhibit currently at the Denver Museum of Nature and Science.

Geiselman estimated that 10 new jobs would be added at the museum to operate and maintain the new facility. Fifteen people are already employed by the museum.

In addition to the creation of jobs, Geiselman said that the museum will have the potential to attract 100,000 visitors a year, and that those visitors will be capable of spending $1 million on dining, shopping, and other activities outside the museum.

For more information on the Fort Collins Museum and Discovery Science Center, including a video “tour” of the new museum, go to www.fcmdsc.org.