ALLENTOWN, Pa. — The Da Vinci Science Center has always been known as an industry leader for its interactive learning experiences, from popular exhibits to traveling exhibitions and more.
Its reputation will be solidified with the transition from its former 29,000-square-foot home at Cedar Crest College to a new state-of-the-art facility in downtown Allentown at 815 W Hamilton St.
The 67,000-square-foot building — officially dubbed The Da Vinci Science Center at PPL Pavilion — is more than twice the size of its previous location and fully transformative.
The center, designed by Allentown-based MKSD Architects, has more hands-on opportunities and packs cutting-edge technology and immersive experiences floor-to-floor that are sure to spawn repeat visits.
"I felt all the emotions in terms of, ‘Wow, first of all, this experience is amazing. But second of all, we're here, we were able to accomplish this."Lin Erickson, Executive Director & CEO of Da Vinci Science Center
“I have to pinch myself,” said Executive Director and CEO Lin Erickson on Wednesday while describing the building as "world class."
“I'm more emotionally impacted. I've told a few people that, and I especially felt that this past weekend when we started allowing visitors to come in to test out the experience of the flow of people and so forth,” Erickson said.
“I felt all the emotions in terms of, ‘Wow, first of all, this experience is amazing. But second of all, we're here, we were able to accomplish this."
LehighValleyNews.com had the opportunity to step inside on Wednesday to take it all in prior to the official grand opening Wednesday, May 22. Here are some highlights:
A cavernous entrance
Enormous doesn’t adequately describe Curiosity Hall, a courtyard displaying large-scale multimedia programs on a 54-foot wall designed to capture the attention of visitors from the moment they step inside.
Design a self-portrait, create your own flying machine and more in this spot that emphasizes the significant makeover of the Da Vinci Science Center’s move downtown.
Everything here is hands-on through nine touchscreens, designed to do nothing less than allow visitors to better, and more personally, connect with the exhibit.
Two side walls eventually will feature those who have made a notable impact in STREAM (Science, Technology, Reading, Engineering, Arts and Math).
“It’s going to be magical,” said Caroline Scutt, director of communications and community relations.
Kids also will be able to connect with the world of physical fitness, dancing and jumping through a workout as part of an upcoming part of the exhibit called “Make a Kid Fit!”
Lehigh Watershed
“No one will protect what they do not care about; and no one will care about what they have never experienced,” says a quote attributed to biologist and natural historian David Attenborough on the wall of the entrance to the watershed exhibit.
It’s this area where visitors can get face-to-face with four North American river otters and watch them use their long, lean bodies and powerful tails to swim through the water and roll through sand.
Under human care at the new center, these otters — along with fish and turtles — are expected to live long and healthy lives. But in the wild, the average lifespan is highly dependent upon water quality.
Developed in collaboration with the Wildlands Conservancy, the exhibit at Da Vinci is meant to emphasize conservation messaging to visitors, stressing that water pollution has been a major issue for otters to thrive in their natural habitat.
“The Lehigh River is cleaner today than it’s been in the last almost 175 years, so it’s really kind of a comeback story,” said Wildlands Conservancy President Chris Kocher.
Kocher said the water quality and habitat in the Lehigh River is sufficient to support a wide range of natural species endemic to Pennsylvania, and the exhibit and collaboration with Da Vinci is designed to provide a level of education and experience of the river as a valuable community resource.
“I hope visitors will understand some of the impacts that the river is facing, and hopefully they become a steward to this natural resource and work to further enhance and protect the natural assets,” Kocher said.
“And that's through education and through connection. So hopefully, people will be inspired to help protect the watershed and then get connected to it and get out to experience it.”
“I hope visitors will understand some of the impacts that the river is facing and hopefully they become a steward to this natural resource and work to further enhance and protect the natural assets."Chris Kocher, Wildlands Conservancy president
LVHN My Body Exhibit
How do you present the often-intimidating concepts of anatomy and health to people of all ages? Through a collaborative partnership between Da Vinci and Lehigh Valley Health Network resulting in a larger-than-life, two-story immersive model of parts of the human body.
Visitors can walk, climb and crawl through a “smelly” intestine and a beating heart, then peek inside the inner workings of the brain.
Plus, where else in Allentown can you pretend to play a doctor? Your journey inside the human body also includes the Endoscopic Explorer exhibit, a collaboration with Olympus that lets visitors try their hand at performing a virtual endoscopy.
This is one exhibit that lets you see your insides in a whole new light, Erickson said, calling it “a safe place to learn about some of the things you can do to protect your health.”
“I think that’s really important. All these neighborhood residents and young people are coming in and they’re learning about things that they can do to take care of themselves, as well as having fun," she said.
Science in the Making, and dinosaurs
The center also recognizes the Lehigh Valley's manufacturing history with Science in the Making, an exhibit that showcases engineering concepts and much more, complete with a life-size Mack Truck on display.
In a separate downstairs wing, more than 30 animatronic dinosaurs also are the stars of the traveling exhibit Dinos Alive!
Erickson said a shark exhibit will follow in the fall, with a changeover period from September to early October.
“I think [sharks] are almost until April, and then we’ll have another major exhibit," she said. "So sometimes they’re three months, sometimes they’re six months, four months, somewhere between three and six months depending on the particular exhibit that we’re bringing in. But there’s so many possibilities because that gallery is almost as big as all the exhibit galleries in our old facility.”
The center will hold its grand opening May 22. Tickets are $20 per person for people ages 3 and up. There are $3 tickets available for people with Access or EBT cards, covering up to as many as six people per visit.
Visitors must purchase both general admission tickets and Dinos Alive! tickets ($9 online, $10 in person) to gain access to the Science Center and the Dinos Alive! exhibit.
Members must reserve their free General Admission tickets and purchase Dinos Alive tickets ($7) for access.
Memberships start at $85 and include free admission.
