One of the oldest observatories in the country–and with upwards of 85,000 visitors a year, and one of the most popular–has secured zoning approval from the Flagstaff Planning & Zoning Commission for a new construction project.
The Lowell Observatory wants to build a nearly 40,000 square foot structure, which will be known as the Astronomy Discovery Center. That building will also include just over 7,800 square feet of roof top museum and library use.
The new structure, to be built on some 600 mostly vacant acres to the west of the observatory will, according to city documents, house an immersive large screen theater, an exhibit hall, an atrium, combined meeting room and banquet areas, and both a café and gift shop, among other features.
The designer for the new center is the Flagstaff-based Johnson Walzer Associates.
Site development for the project will include the extension of a service drive and public entry drive; as well as the building of new water, sewer, gas, and communications lines.
Members of the planning and zoning commission voted to approve the observatory’s request for a conditional use permit.
It is thought that once work on the Astronomy Discovery Center is completed, the observatory’s Steele Visitor Center, which currently hosts many of the events intended for the new center, will be repurposed for conference and classroom use.
Work on the estimated $37 million project is expected to begin later this year, with a 2023 completion date.
The Lowell Observatory was opened in 1894 and designated by Time magazine in 2011 as one of the “world’s 100 most important places.”
By Garry Boulard