$38M Children’s Museum to Open in 2017

By Eliza Theiss, Associate Editor

Louisiana Children’s Museum Early Learning Village

New Orleans is on track for the late 2017 opening of the Louisiana Children’s Museum Early Learning Village, reported the Mid-City Messenger. Set to open in time for New Orleans’ 2018 tricentennial, the Early Learning Village is moving at a steady pace toward accruing the $38 million needed for its development. Funds for the first-of-its-kind early learning museum will be put together from three different sources. The state of Louisiana will provide the bulk of the funds, directing more than $20 million towards the interactive children’s learning center. The Louisiana Children’s Museum plans to raise $13 million through private donations and funding – of this it has amassed $5 million to date. The third source of capital will be provided by the sale of the museum’s Julia Street building.

Set to be developed on 8.5 acres in City Park, the 58,000-square-foot facility will co-locate the children’s museum with a nature center, literacy center, parent and teacher resource center, childcare center, performing arts center, edible garden, kitchen and café. The complex will also include outdoor multipurpose spaces, several acres of discovery walks and diverse ecosystems. The Early Learning Village will be built to showcase sustainability and environmental stewardship. As such, the project is designed to attain a LEED Gold rating. The site design is also part of a national Sustainable Sites pilot project.

According to Mid-City Messenger, the project’s design is the result of collaboration between Mithun, HandsOn! Inc., Waggonner & Ball Architects and Gyroscope Inc. The latter has been the master planner of the acclaimed Thinkery, Austin’s new children’s museum.

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Rendering courtesy of Mithun