Museum on the Move: Popular children’s museum relocates to a historic site
by Jonathan McGaha | April 30, 2010 12:00 am
A beloved Philadelphia destination, Please Touch Museum is dedicated to enriching the lives of children by creating learning opportunities through play. In 1998, after several previous relocations, Please Touch Museum was seeking a new, permanent location for its increasingly popular exhibitions. Selected by museum officials, NorthStar Advisors LLC, a Philadelphia-based, real estate-related project management company, was responsible for overseeing the major relocation project, involving an extensive restoration and renovation.
As the venture involved multiple stakeholders—including city officials, historic preservationists, design and architecture teams, museum staff and future museum visitors—NorthStar worked closely with Please Touch Museum’s team to help achieve its goals of finding an ideal location for the museum and successfully relocating and re-launching its exhibits.
Please Touch Museum was founded in 1976 by educators, artists and parents as the country’s first museum dedicated to serving children ages seven and under. Housed in a 2,200-square-foot (204-m2) space in Philadelphia’s Academy of Natural Sciences, the popular museum soon outgrew the facility. In 1978, the museum relocated for the first time to a bigger space with extended hours and increased exhibits, and again in 1983 to a three-story, 30,000-square-foot (2,787-m2) building in the heart of Philadelphia’s museum district.
In 1988, the museum was accredited by the American Association of Museums, and it continued to thrive. From 1983 to 1993, the museum’s attendance grew 70 percent, memberships increased 52 percent, full-time staff increased from nine to 37 and its operating budget more than tripled. Soon, the museum capitalized on an opportunity to purchase an adjoining building, adding 40 percent more exhibit space. However, by 1998, the museum was once again seeking a larger location.
As planning for the new museum location began, the Please Touch Museum team established their desire to use locally-based firms for the architectural and engineering design work in a show of support for the surrounding community. Though construction began on a new facility at Penn’s Landing on the Delaware River waterfront, the development plan soon fell through, leaving the museum in a tenuous position and in need of efficient and effective help in order to move forward and find a new home.
Please Touch turned to NorthStar Advisors, well known for its extensive experience in project and relocation management. Joining the team as project manager and owner’s representative, the company worked with Please Touch Museum to review 45 potential new museum sites. After much due diligence, they decided on Memorial Hall, a National Historic Site. One of only two surviving structures from the 1876 Centennial Exhibition held in Philadelphia, which celebrated the 100th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence, Memorial Hall was designed in the famed Beaux Arts style. The hall served as a home for multiple museum exhibits before being converted to a recreation center and headquarters for Philadelphia’s own Fairmount Park Commission.
Meeting all of the museum’s requirements, including cost, visibility, visitor accessibility and sustainability, Please Touch agreed to an 80-year lease on Feb. 14, 2005, and broke ground on Dec.15, 2005. Updating Memorial Hall, however, would prove to be an extensive process for NorthStar.
In order to renovate Memorial Hall successfully,the two-year restoration needed to address multiple issues and hazards within the facility, such as water damage, termite infestation and years of deferred maintenance. NorthStar and the chosen architecture firm, Kise Straw & Kolodner, Philadelphia, had to work predominantly with the building’s existing materials, mason and plaster. However, KSK carefully incorporated metal materials, such as aluminum, where possible, to update the building and insure its safety and durability. Metal was specifically used in creating the museum’s ramps, handrails and stairs, in addition to other elements that needed to be particularly sturdy. Metal was also carefully used on the façade of the building as a decorative element, complementing the existing stonework.
Updated with a mindful eye to the past, much of the hall’s ornate plasterwork was fully restored and the original paint colors, peach and clay brown, carefully reproduced. At 150,000 square feet (13,935 m2), the museum is now triple its previous size with parking for up to 280 cars. With the grand opening of the museum on Oct. 18, 2008, an 11-year dream was finally realized.
Perhaps one of the most unique features of the new museum is the addition of a9,000-square-foot (836-m2) Carousel House, featuring the only functional carousel in Philadelphia. An addition comprised of glass and steel,the Carousel House serves as the home for a 100-year-old carousel with 52 intricately crafted, hand-carved animals. On loan from the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission, the Carousel House merges the building’s past with its present, combining masonry and metal elements.Most notably, the Carousel House features a roof comprised of aluminum panels, carefully constructed to allow daylight to shine directly onto the carousel, illuminating the unique piece. Aluminum panels were also used on the exterior of the Carousel House to mimic the motif featured in the already existing stonework, extending it around the façade of the entire facility, and updating the building while paying reverence to its past.
The decision to relocate Please Touch Museum to Memorial Hall instead of a new building has brought awareness not only to the museum itself, but also to Memorial Hall as a Philadelphia historical landmark. This increased awareness has brought more attention to the city and people of Philadelphia, including significant coverage of Memorial Hall and Please Touch Museum and their historic significance.
Most importantly, the museum has offered numerous opportunities for children as an award winning place to learn, play and explore. Welcoming half a million visitors a year, Please Touch Museum is now one of the top 10 destinations visited by tourists in Philadelphia, and has been recognized as a premier children’s museum both nationally and internationally. A well-known Philadelphia destination, the family-friendly, hands-on Please Touch Museum is heralded as a place where learning is fun. Garnering multiple real estate and design industry awards for NorthStar Advisors, it is considered one of the most popular children’s museums in the country.
As principal of NorthStar Advisors, and principal and director of NorthStar Museums, Ronald A. Street oversees the daily operations of both companies.With more than 20 years of experience in engineering design, project management and construction services, the firm’s clients are assured of the highest quality and level of integrity of service. His vast experience and knowledge in the field of project management has led him to manage many highly successful projects across the country.
Source URL: https://www.metalarchitecture.com/projects/museum-on-the-move-popular-childrens-museum-relocates-to-a-historic-site/