Orlando Science Center plans to bring new life to the museum with a $13.5 million exhibit called “Life,” which will replace the long-standing NatureWorks area.
Officials revealed details and broke through into the expansion area with sledgehammers on the ground floor of the science center Wednesday.
“The exhibit is going to do an amazing job of really helping people, giving them the opportunity to connect with the animals,” said JoAnn Newman, president and CEO of Orlando Science Center. “And we know that once you do that, once you form that bond, then that is an inspiration to action. It is a call to action.”
It will be the largest expansion in the science center’s history, she said. “Life” is expected to be completed in late 2023. NatureWorks was part of the museum’s lineup since its current location opened in 1997.
“There’s so much more we can do today,” Newman said. “It’s just amazing what we’re going to be able to accomplish with the design itself.”
“Life” will be presented in three basic areas: ocean, swamp and rainforest.
“When you’re walking into the ocean space, with projection and lighting and so forth, it’s going to make you feel like you’re sort of walking into the ocean,” Newman said. “Then there’s a huge 360-degree tank that will feature Bonnethead sharks and other fish and animals in there.”
The 10,000-square-foot area — combining the NatureWorks space and the one-time location of KidsTown — will be remodeled but keep some science center traditions.
“We wanted to make sure that the whole space still had a very focused connection to Central Florida and Florida overall,” said Brandan Lanman, vice president of visitor experience, who oversaw design and development of the exhibition.
“Additionally, I didn’t want to take away what has become an iconic piece of coming into this building. Like, every time you walk in you go, there’s a swamp, live alligators. And it becomes sort of an experience staple,” he said. “So let’s build around that.”
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Future visitors will be able to walk up and under the large cypress tree in the center of the museum for a “more immersive feeling” from it, Lanman said.
And animals maintain key roles in the swamp of “Life.”
“We’re actually giving the squirrels an opportunity to run over the top of the guests’ heads. There will be trails built into the ceiling, so you’ll be able to actually watch them scattering around and moving about,” Lanman said.
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Those habitats are built to resemble the animals’ normal world, he said.
“It’s meant to imitate as much of that as possible, to give them the best experience.”
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Turtles, alligators, fish and birds will still reside there, too.
Newman was flanked by Orange County Mayor Jerry Demings and donor Sarah Layton, who used sledgehammers to break down the NatureWorks gate to reveal the new “Life” logo.
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The expansion project is “one way that our children in the present will benefit … but all the children in the future will benefit from this,” Demings said. The county steered $10 million from tourist development taxes to the exhibit, the mayor said.
Layton donated $3 million to the project and will have “presenting sponsor” credit for the display. Her gift is the largest individual contribution in the history of the science center, Newman said.
“I love animals, and I’m a scientist. I like things that are based on facts,” said Layton, an Orlando resident who grew up in South Florida. Her career as a business consultant and strategist led her to form a foundation, she said.
The new exhibit will be “just right up my alley,” she said. “So many people think, ‘Oh, science is boring. It’s dry. It’s drab.’ It’s really not. It impacts absolutely every corner of our life in every way possible.”
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