Rogers Stirk Harbour + Partners create new US$162m home for Washington's International Spy Museum
After months of secrecy, Washington D.C.’s International Spy Museum has officially revealed plans for a US$162m (€143.2m, £102.1m) move to property developers JBG Companies’ L’Enfant Plaza.
Designed by London-based Rogers Stirk Harbour + Partners – with design development by Gallagher and Associates’ Washington office – the spy museum is currently seeking funding for the project, with US$65m (€57.4m, £41m) coming from the museum’s owners, US$15m (€13.2m, £9.5m) tentatively coming from the D.C. government, and the remainder sourced through public fundraising and corporate sponsors, as well as a US$25m (€22m, £15.7m) tax-exempt bond issue.
The plans for a new facility emerged in April, though both the museum and the architects didn’t reveal details at the time, stating that the release was ‘premature.'
“The ownership group of the museum went in front of the Commission of Fine Arts in D.C. and presented our plans for what we’d like to do to move the museum to this space at L’Enfant Plaza,” said Jason Werden, public relations manager for the International Spy Museum, speaking exclusively about the project to AM2. “We want a space where we can fully expand the museum and have our own footprint there. As of now we are still moving the process forward and hope to relocate by 2017 to the new space.”
Museum officials have been seeking a move from the International Spy Museum’s current home since 2013. Initial plans would have seen the museum move into an expanded Carnegie Library, but the District’s historic preservation panel vetoed the proposal, declaring that the plan did not meet preservation guidelines.
The new plan will see the construction of a new facility as part of the L’Enfant Plaza development currently owned by JBG, with the site becoming a permanent home for the spy museum. The development would see the museum expand in size from around 65,000sq ft (6,000sq m) at its current home in Washington’s Penn Quarter to 100,000sq ft (9,290sq m) at L’Enfant Plaza.
“We realised a number of years ago that regardless of what we were going to do we needed more space,” continued Werden. “We needed a larger footprint so that we could bring in temporary exhibits to attract new and repeat visitors. We want a space where we can lay out the complete history of espionage and intelligence, but then still have room for temporary exhibits where we can tell additional stories over time. The chance to relocate will allow us to make our exhibition and visitor experience more interactive, and to expand on our permanent collection and the stories we tell.”
If approved, the new facility would provide more space for permanent and temporary exhibits, as well as rooftop event space in a glass enclosed roof structure and a rooftop terrace. Also included will be contemporary exhibition space, a theatre, special events space and classrooms. Washington’s Commission of Fine Arts granted general concept approval during the April meeting.
The museum’s owners are now aiming to finalise the land deal with JBG, with plans also to turn the museum into a non-profit venture controlled by the District. Werden added that during the process JBG has acted as a liaison with the city to identify the best location for the museum and for working together on the development of that space.
“The museum is really dedicated to maintaining a relationship with the District of Columbia,” said Werden. “We have not finalised anything specific to this location. Once we officially do so, we are looking forward to reveal more details in the future.”
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