September 29, 2009 -- Cleveland’s west-side is about to add another feather in its cap for tourist attractions with the installation of the new
West Side Children's Museum (
Website |
Profile) in Avon, Ohio. The museum’s mission is to provide a location on the west side of Cleveland for tourists and families with children to explore vehicles which stimulate curiosity and facilitate fun learning through hands-on, interactive discovery of the arts, humanities and science. The facility is targeting its exhibits to reach and appeal to children ranging in age from birth to 12 years old.
Planning has been in progress for 18 months and exhibit building and fundraising are firmly underway. The new museum is aggressively scheduled to open to the public in early 2010.
The concept for the museum was commissioned by its founder, Bracken Danielson, President of Danco Metal Products in Avon Lake, Ohio. “Cleveland has so many gems within the city limits, but I wanted a place closer to my home where I could take my daughter for a day of fun,” explains Danielson regarding his inspiration to pursue the project. “We travel to so many different cities, but those with children’s museums are always my 4-year old daughter’s favorite places to go. I wanted to bring the best of what I have experienced across the nation to Cleveland’s western suburbs,” he continues.
The museum is located at 1200 Center Road in Avon, strategically located less than a mile from the Avon Commons and the French Creek Historical District (Website | Profile) and less than ½ mile from I-90. The overall experience is aimed to help children explore, understand and express themselves in a scaled down and slightly imaginary interpretation of the natural and commercial world around them.
Phase I production includes the following exhibits:
- Traffic Town, designed to allow children to learn about navigating to and from locations using our streets, street signs and road markings
- Our Town, designed as a mini city complete with a grocery store, bank, hospital, post office, fire station, garden and garage
- Transportation, designed to show the efficiency and drawbacks to using different means of transportation for different needs i.e. shipping cargo, traveling on vacation, driving to the bank
- Toddler Zone, designed specifically for children under the age of 3
- The River & Waterworks, with interactive exhibits throughout a 145’ meandering river and an overall message of following water’s journey from a rain cloud, to facilitating transportation, converting to energy, providing entertainment and ultimately to filtration for consumption
- A Pirate Ship and Castle, which allow children to explore their imagination and dream up adventures on the open seas or in medieval times
- Energy, which encourages children to learn about and interact with the latest breakthroughs in energy conservation and green energy solutions
- A Community Room designed with flexibility in mind to accommodate field trip classes, workshops, birthday parties and other special events.
Phase II and III development are still in planning, but hope to include outdoor learning opportunities and eventual building expansion.
The museum founding Board of Trustees is actively seeking out title, exhibit, corporate and individual sponsors to help offset development cost and overhead and to continue the ongoing mission. “The museum, in its core concept, is designed to change and grow with the latest trends and technologies in education,” explains Danielson. “We are depending on sponsorships to help us continue to offer the public a family experience that parallels the already high standards of our community’s and neighboring communities’ school systems. The museum really is a bridge between education and entertainment,” he continues. Information on sponsorship opportunities can be found on the West Side Children’s Museum’s web site at www.explorewithus.org .
“The key to this venture’s success stems from our attention to detail in the planning and implementation,” says Danielson. “We have
assembled a team of experienced professionals to help our founding Board deploy the vision,” he continues. The development team is led by Jamestown Creative Group of Avon, Ohio. The exhibit designer is Varin Acevedo of Los Angeles, CA, and Ohio Displays of Cleveland, Ohio. Collectively the team boasts over 150 years in the creative industry, with specific museum experience in Cleveland, throughout Ohio and across the nation.
Two planned special event fundraisers are in the works, including a formal Opening Ceremony in mid November which will be geared towards sponsors, independent donors, consultants and local dignitaries. The goal for the event is to raise funds for exhibit building and general operational expenses, marketing, advertising expenses and ongoing overhead. “Some people may consider the timing for such an undertaking to be unwise, given our current economic climate,” explains Danielson. “I see that as an asset. Material cost is low, commercial real estate expenses are at record lows, and service providers and builders are forced to adjust their billing to accommodate slashed budgets. In an up economy, our start-up expenses would have been astronomical. For this particular project, the economic climate couldn’t be better.” he adds.
For additional information on the museum, including 3D renderings of the space, please visit the West Side Children’s Museum at www.explorewithus.org.
About the West Side Children’s Museum
The purpose for the West Side Children’s Museum is to provide a location on the west side of Cleveland for families with children to explore vehicles which stimulate curiosity and facilitate learning through hands-on, interactive discovery of the arts, humanities and science. The facility strives to redefine the boundaries of the traditional museum experience through creative and challenging permanent exhibits and programs that can change with growing trends in education and teach children how to lead healthier, more active lives. The exhibits’ messages are designed to extend beyond the museum walls through the implementation of takeaways, creative use of e-mail and interactive web site applications. The West Side Children’s Museum is in the process of applying for federal tax-exempts status under Internal Revenue Code section 501(c)(3).
About Jamestown Creative Group
With over 20 years of experience, The Jamestown Creative Group brings cutting edge marketing and visuals to the museum. Jamestown has worked with some of the largest companies in the world to market their products and services through all avenues of media. In addition to project management, Jamestown Group is leading an aggressive marketing campaign with the goal that ensures the West Side Children’s Museum is known in over 1 million households and businesses in Cleveland and surrounding areas. Visit our web site at www.jamestowngroup.com.
About Ohio Displays
Established in 1919, ODI continues to provide award-winning design and quality fabrication of trade show exhibits, permanent exhibits, corporate lobbies / showrooms - and provides extensive rental exhibits for corporate events. Visit our web site at www.ohiodisplays.com.
About Varin Acevedo
With an impressive list of museum design credentials, Varin Acevedo was chosen as the primary exhibit designer for the project. Varin’s local positions have ranged from Design Director at Ohio Displays – to Designer and Management positions with the Western Reserve Historical Society and The Cleveland Museum of Natural History. Visit Varin’s website at www.varin-ace.webs.com.
