BY PEPPER FISHER
Port Angeles – Getting a new Marine Life Center and Aquarium built on the Port Angeles waterfront to replace the nearly 50-year-old existing facility has been a long time coming, but the end is in sight.
The Feiro Marine Life Center’s Executive Director Melissa Williams recently announced that the groundbreaking ceremony is now set for Wednesday, April 8, and the target for getting the new 13,000 square-foot facility open to the public is sometime in early 2028.
Williams says 70-80 percent of the funding is in place, thanks in part to an $18,000 million federal grant they acquired through their partnership with NOAA, whose National Marine Sanctuary headquarters will also be in the new facility. The project has also secured $1 million in state funds and about $5 million from private donations.
Williams says the next step in their capital campaign will also begin at the April 8 groundbreaking, where they’ll kick off their public fundraising effort.
“So, like the Dream Playground, like the Boys and Girls Club, like so many of the great projects that have come to fruition here, that will be a great opportunity for everyone to get involved and give what you can, for sure.”
Williams says the basics of the design are in place but ongoing, and a local contractor has been selected to do the build, but the company name is under wraps until further notice. Total cost is expected to be between 30-and-$35 million.
The new Marine Life Center will be a sizable and very modern upgrade from the current facility. Visitors will of course see larger aquariums, touch pools, digital displays of larger sea life in the area, and something you might not expect to see in an aquarium: sea birds.
“So, Tufted Puffins, Common Murres, Longtail Ducks, and Harlequin Ducks. All of those animals will come to us from other facilities. So they’ll be animals that were raised in human care already, and just moving to a new home with us.”
Another cool feature of the new Marine Life Center will be a lobby, open to the public, free of charge.
“One of the important driving factors is, even though we are a non-profit and this is a community project, we will have a large community free space in the lobby. So, there will be exhibits there so that people can come and enjoy those exhibits without having to spend a dime, really. And once you buy a ticket, that’s where you get access to all of the live animals. We will not only tell stories about the animals that live here, but also, us, the people that live here. And we want to highlight that as part of the story about visiting the Olympic Coast.”
Again, the groundbreaking for the new Marine Life Center next to Field Arts and Events Hall is scheduled for April 8, with the start time to be announced soon.