OMSI invites ideas for big expansion
by Stephen Beaven, The Oregonian
Friday November 14, 2008, 9:55 PM
Starting early next year, the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry will begin an intensive statewide campaign to seek support and sharpen the focus of a proposed half-billion-dollar expansion that could include new development on 14 acres surrounding the museum.
The long-range plan calls for a project that would create more than 1 million square feet of additional space for the museum and for developers who want to build on OMSI-owned land at the museum's riverfront home in Southeast Portland.
With light rail and streetcar expansion planned for the site, the project would make the 64-year-old museum a key component in Portland's effort to create a science and technology corridor spanning the Willamette River. The museum would link to Oregon Health & Sciences University and Portland State University.
The project also would generate revenue for the museum, which had to restructure a state loan early this year.
The museum currently includes traveling exhibits, camps and classes for kids, hands-on learning centers for preschoolers and a five-story Omnimax theater. It also hosts conferences and teacher development programs. But it is especially popular among parents and their children.
The expansion remains in the early stages, and details regarding funding, the nature of the surrounding development and other issues are uncertain. The $500 million price tag is especially tenuous, OMSI President Nancy Stueber said.
"There are so many questions that have to be answered before you could apply any reality to that number," Stueber said.
The total cost -- and how much of it will come from OMSI's pockets -- should become clearer as museum officials begin to tour the state in January. The two-year public outreach is expected to help shape museum plans and generate interest among potential developers.
Serious discussions about the expansion began in 2006 and resulted in a master plan that outlines several broad priorities. The expanded campus will focus on sustainability, science education and careers, and the creation of a public gathering space for conversations about the environment. It will also serve as a moneymaker for the museum.
Creating new revenue is particularly important for OMSI, which relies on donations and revenue from memberships, tickets, retail and its restaurant. The museum recently restructured a $15 million state loan from the early '90s that it had struggled to pay off. With help from the city, the state and corporate donors, OMSI has now paid about $10 million, making the remaining principal more manageable.
Stueber doesn't know yet how the museum will structure the development deals on its land. Although the new development is expected to mirror master plan priorities, Stueber said the museum hasn't decided on any specifics.
"It could be a lot of things," she said. "We've already had a lot of partners approach us with specific ideas. But we haven't settled on any yet."
Those decisions will be made starting in 2012. Construction will follow, and the entire project is expected to be completed by 2017.
But obstacles lie ahead, including potential zoning changes in the central eastside industrial district.
"It could be somewhat controversial," said Stephen Iwata of the Portland Planning Bureau. "The central east side has always been somewhat reluctant to see changes to the industrial sanctuary."
And then there's the economy, which could make funding difficult.
But despite gloomy financial forecasts, now is a good time to plan a big project, said Ethan Seltzer, director of the Toulan School of Urban Studies and Planning at Portland State University.
"We're in a down cycle now," Seltzer said. "But we're going to come out of it at some point. Then we're going to grow, so projects like this are not so far-fetched."
