DIA gives MOSH extension to iron out design details ahead of move to Northbank

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Jacksonville’s Museum of Science and History is pressing on with its plan to move to the Northbank.

But the Downtown Investment Authority raised design concerns at Wednesday’s meeting.

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DIA CEO Lori Boyer says there wasn’t enough detail to visualize what the new museum building would look like, and how it would fit into the site.

“At the moment, this is really just a site plan that shows a box where the museum goes, and kind of a colored block,” she said. “It was really difficult to tell, what would the entrance look like? What would the experience be [for] someone walking down the street? How would people on the Riverwalk be able to interact with the building? Is there a cafe on that side? Those types of things.”

Boyer says the property is prime real estate. It sits on the Riverfront and is within walking distance from the Jags stadium. The city and Jags owner Shad Khan plan to turn it into a sports and entertainment district.

MOSH’s new building would be a part of that project. Boyer says the city’s $20 million capital improvement plan will pay for the park space that will surround the new museum. Though MOSH is fundraising and paying for the construction of the building itself, the DIA would be donating the property to MOSH.

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“That’s part of why the board is concerned because if they’re going to give away a valuable piece of riverfront property, they want to see a museum in the end that is exciting, and a real tourist attraction,” Boyer added.

The DIA offered MOSH an extension Wednesday, and MOSH agreed that the extension would be helpful.

“We worked out a solution that allows time for the development and design that produces that detail, but also allows the project to keep moving forward,” Boyer said.

MOSH will present its improved site design to the DIA in mid-March, showing how the building will fit in with the park space, Boyer says. The DIA will also hold a workshop with MOSH to articulate what details the board wants to see in the site plan.

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