Discovery Place unveils new name and upgraded plans at its nature museum ‘for everyone’
Discovery Place has picked a new name and updated plans for its revamped nature museum.
It’s out with Discovery Place Nature and in with Charlotte Museum of Nature at Freedom Park. The center is scheduled to open its doors in 2026, according to the 77-year-old nonprofit.
Construction is underway at the original park site. Along with learning and outdoor experiences, it will have nature trails, a treetop canopy walk, an owl enclosure, a frog bog and a North American river otter habitat.
The nature museum will also have interactive exhibits, programs, labs and animals representing the Piedmont region.
Discovery Place selected the name to represent an educational space that can be a cornerstone for learning and gathering for the community, according to the organization.
“Its new name underscores our deep ties to Charlotte while honoring our organization’s roots,” CEO and President Catherine Wilson Horne stated in a news release Wednesday. “We’re creating a museum for everyone.”
The museum also will have a new visual identity with a modern fractal tree logo as a symbol of growth, exploration and being connected with a science education foundation.
Discovery Place museum milestone
Discovery Place broke ground in May 2024 and celebrated with a tree planting. Last month, a topping out celebration marked a construction milestone with the last steel beam on the structure, according to Discovery Place.
To accommodate visitors, Discovery Place designed the nature museum to be integrated with Freedom Park through public gardens and community spaces.
Mecklenburg County and Discovery Place are working together to open the new nature museum
Liollio Architecture and Hood Design Studio handled the new museum’s planning and design, while construction was led by Rodgers Builders.
The construction work came with controversy among county commissioners because of rising costs.
Those costs swelled from $35 million to $62.3 million since 2017, according to previous reports in The Charlotte Observer. Costs was higher than expected despite redesigns and multiple bidding processes. Mecklenburg County commissioners approved an additional $10 million in 2023.
The county owns the property and facility on Sterling Road near Freedom Park and Little Sugar Creek Greenway. Discovery Place has operated the museum since it opened in 1947.
More on Discovery Place
Discovery Place serves as a hub for science learning in the Carolinas focused on the exchange of ideas, scientific exploration, creative expression, problem-solving and learning.
Its other locations are Discovery Place Science in uptown, which has an IMAX movie theater, Discovery Place Kids-Huntersville and Discovery Place Kids-Rockingham.
This story was originally published January 16, 2025 at 5:55 AM.
