Work in Progress
ERIN FLYNN Daily News-Record
PUBLICATION: Daily News-Record (Harrisonburg, VA)
SECTION: Harrisonburg
Photo courtesy of Lantz Construction Company
DATE: February 1, 2017
HARRISONBURG — Akyra Boatswain is a frequent visitor of the Explore More Discovery Museum in downtown Harrisonburg.
Once a month, Akyra and her mother, Amanda Boatswain, check out various exhibits that fill the first floor of the museum. That’s how the two spent Wednesday afternoon.
“It makes me think of fun things,” said Akyra, a home-schooler from McGaheysville. “It [makes] me think of making things.”
A station that teaches children how to milk a cow is one that caught the 5-year-old’s eye.
“She loves animals,” Boatswain said.
As Akyra explored the exhibits that fill the first floor, construction and exhibit installation continued upstairs.
In June, Lantz Construction began working on the 33,000-square-foot building’s second and third floors.
So far, the museum has raised $1.35 million for the expansion project, said Lisa Shull, Explore More Discovery Museum’s executive director. Nearly $1 million has been used for work on the two floors.
Construction is now complete on the second floor, where permanent exhibits will be installed as funding becomes available, Shull said.
Work also has begun on the third floor, which has new windows that were installed between June and November. The remaining projects, such as installing a heating, ventilation and air conditioning unit, are at a standstill until more funds can be raised.
A treehouse exhibit is the only permanent one expected to open on the second floor in the next couple of months.
An area where children can participate in weather-related activities is among its features.
“Teachers will love that,” she added.
The rest of the second floor’s space will feature a ball maze and construction and aviation exhibits.
“This year, we’ll be raising funds to put in more permanent exhibits, but in the meantime we’ll be outfitting this space with temporary exhibits and activities,” Shull said.
The third floor will eventually house a community education center featuring a multipurpose room for art shows and classes.
“We’d also love to have demo kitchen where we can hold children’s classes,” Shull said.
The expansion project aims to offer more wiggle room for the 60,000 yearly visitors.
“Sometimes, we have so many people in here and just not enough space,” she said.
Museum leaders also are planning to serve older children with the expansion.
A 1,250-square-foot room on the first floor will offer children 7 and older a place to build machinery and work on various projects. The space will feature laser cutters, sewing machines, hand and power tools, and possibly a music studio.
“We’ll certainly have some idea-launching activities,” said Marcia Zook, the museum’s exhibit director. “They’re also welcome to bring their own ideas and their own thoughts in to work on those.”