The Children’s Museum & Theatre of Maine (CMTM) officially opened last Thursday, June 24, in its new 30,000-sf location at Thompson’s Point along the Fore River in Portland.
This location allows the facility to expand it programming and services in ways that its former 15,000-sf location, in Portland’s Arts District, restricted. The new building—offering the state-of-the-art Maddy’s Theatre with 100 seats, a STEM science center, a floor devoted to arts, culture, and community, and offices and meeting rooms—opens with limited capacity and other protocols in place to protect visitors and staff during the pandemic. Once it opens fully, the Museum and Theatre to reach over 200,000 visitors per year.
Bruner/Cott Architects led this project, which connects the CMTM to the site’s industrial shipping and railroad heritage. “We began this project nearly six years ago, building on our firm’s long history of museum and gallery design,” recalls firm Principal Jason Forney. “A true collaboration between our firm and our client has produced a building that embodies the Children’s Museum & Theatre of Maine’s mission and goals for its new venue, certain to attract visitors from near and far.”
The three-floor building’s proportions and window patterns are inspired by Thompson Point’s historic brick structures and steel cross-bracing. The exterior cladding of colorful metal shingles is arranged in a dynamic pattern. An outdoor play area is adjacent to the waterfront landscape.
Floor-to-ceiling glass surrounds the building’s 20-ft-high entry lobby, which connects the inside and outside and brings in natural light. The building's exhibit spaces incorporate visuals and programming that connect to Maine’s culture.
COST-SAVING SUSTAINABILITY
CMTM's new location, once the site of a railcar repair yard, was designed to blend in with its natural surroundings.
The project’s building team, which included construction manager Zachau Construction, employed sustainable strategies that addressed the challenges of a brownfield site that was once a railway repair yard. The project pre-loaded the building area to compact the soil and minimize off-site removal. Low wattage LED lighting was used throughout the building, and a VRF (variable refrigeration flow) system was installed for heating and cooling. The Museum site is also close to local, regional, and international public transportation.
To help pay for this project, the estimated construction cost of which was $7 million, the Children’s Museum & Theatre surpassed its $14 million fundraising goal, having raised over $15 million from more than 500 donors and the proceeds of the sale of its former building at 142 Free Street. CMTM worked with Nextstage Design to conceptualize and align its programming with its fundraising capabilities.
“As we move past the pandemic, we are enthusiastic about all the experiences our new building and its innovative, interactive exhibits and state-of-the-art theatre will bring to fans of our previous facility, as well as new visitors to Maine from across the nation and the world,” says CMTM Executive Director Julie Butcher.
Related Stories
| Jun 18, 2014
Study shows walkable urbanism has positive economic impact
Walkable communities have a higher GDP, greater wealth, and higher percentages of college grads, according to a new study by George Washington University.
| Jun 18, 2014
Arup uses 3D printing to fabricate one-of-a-kind structural steel components
The firm's research shows that 3D printing has the potential to reduce costs, cut waste, and slash the carbon footprint of the construction sector.
| Jun 16, 2014
6 U.S. cities at the forefront of innovation districts
A new Brookings Institution study records the emergence of “competitive places that are also cool spaces.”
| Jun 13, 2014
First look: BIG's spiraling museum for watchmaker Audemars Piguet
The glass-and-steel pavilion's spiral structure acts as a storytelling device for the company's history.
| Jun 12, 2014
Tod Williams Billie Tsien Architects' design selected for new UCSC facility
The planned site is a natural landscape among redwood trees with views over Monterey Bay, a site that the architects have called “one of the most beautiful they have ever worked on.”
| Jun 12, 2014
Austrian university develops 'inflatable' concrete dome method
Constructing a concrete dome is a costly process, but this may change soon. A team from the Vienna University of Technology has developed a method that allows concrete domes to form with the use of air and steel cables instead of expensive, timber supporting structures.
| Jun 11, 2014
David Adjaye’s housing project in Sugar Hill nears completion
A new development in New York's historic Sugar Hill district nears completion, designed to be an icon for the neighborhood's rich history.
| Jun 9, 2014
Green Building Initiative launches Green Globes for Sustainable Interiors program
The new program focuses exclusively on the sustainable design and construction of interior spaces in nonresidential buildings and can be pursued by both building owners and individual lessees of commercial spaces.
| Jun 4, 2014
Want to design a Guggenheim? Foundation launches open competition for proposed Helsinki museum
This is the first time the Guggenheim Foundation has sought a design through an open competition. Anonymous submissions for stage one of the competition are due September 10, 2014.
| Jun 4, 2014
Construction team named for Atlanta Braves ballpark
A joint venture between Barton Malow, Brasfield & Gorrie, Mortenson Construction, and New South Construction will build the Atlanta Braves ballpark, which is scheduled to open in early 2017. Check out the latest renderings of the plan.
