The Museum of Science & History has tapped global design firm DLR Group as the lead architect for its plans to build a $85 million facility at the Jacksonville Shipyards property.
DLR Group will collaborate with kasper architects + associates, a Jacksonville-based architecture firm, and SCAPE, a New York-based landscape architecture firm, on the capital project that aims to relocate MOSH to a four-acre parcel on the Northbank, the museum announced Tuesday.
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The museum said MOSH has outgrown its current location, a 77,000-square foot facility on Jacksonville’s Southbank. The goal now is to build a museum capable of handling an estimated 469,000 visitors a year, a 168-percent increase over the existing facility’s foot traffic.
MOSH President and CEO Bruce Fafard said DLR Group was chosen to the lead the endeavor, known as MOSH Genesis, following an eight-month competitive bidding process.
“We knew this project required the expertise of both a national firm with deep experience in museum architecture, and a local partner with existing relationships and knowledge of the Jacksonville market,” said Fafard, adding that the trio selected for the project will “bring our vision to life.”
DLR Group, a top ranked cultural design firm, has extensive experience with museum design, including the Cleveland Museum of Natural History, the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts in Philadelphia, among other institutions.
MOSH is negotiating with the Downtown Development Authority to come up with a term sheet for a -four-acre parcel at Jacksonville’s Shipyards property. Work on the project, which is expected to take three years to complete, could begin in early 2022.