Nearly two decades of planning, construction and anticipation culminated Saturday with the public debut of GulfQuest National Maritime Museum of the Gulf of Mexico, a $62 million venture projected to attract 300,000 visitors a year to Mobile’s waterfront.
Tony Zodrow, executive director of the hands-on museum and the former chief executive officer of Birmingham’s McWane Science Center, said “extra measures” have been taken at every turn to ensure an “immersive experience” for patrons.
“Beyond its focus on the Gulf of Mexico, GulfQuest is unique among maritime museums in that it features interactive exhibits, simulators and theaters, complemented by artifacts and memorabilia,” Zodrow said. “The exhibits are both entertaining and educational, and will truly encourage visitors to explore every maritime aspect of the Gulf of Mexico.”
Touted as the first museum dedicated to the Gulf Coast’s rich maritime traditions – and only the third interactive maritime museum in the world – the 120,000-square-foot GulfQuest boasts 90 exhibits, a museum store, café and event space all within a building shaped like a vessel that appears ready to dock in Mobile Bay.
“It’s not every day you see an enormous ship built out of concrete – and it was not without its challenges – but this is a project we’re just thrilled to finally see completed and ready for business,” said Mike Lanier, president and chief executive officer of Birmingham-based Hoar Program Management (HPM).
Although HPM was engaged in the actual construction for about three years, Lanier said his firm’s involvement with the project dates to December 2008, followed by a “protracted period of planning and design.”
The finished product traces its roots to the 1990s, when state and local leaders formed a nonprofit organization to create a first-of-its-kind destination to celebrate the historical, economic and cultural significance of the Gulf Coast.
Then-Mayor Mike Dow championed the project as a focal point of public activity to revive waterfront access, and during his tenure “Mobile Landing” welcomed the Arthur C. Outlaw Convention Center, Cooper Riverside Park and the Alabama Cruise Terminal.
GulfQuest’s construction began in 2010, during Mayor Sam Jones’ administration, and was completed earlier this summer. Exhibit installation began in mid-2014.
E.B. Peebles, chairman of the GulfQuest board of trustees, told attendees of Thursday’s sneak peek gala that a public-private partnership of this magnitude “requires a lot of people, a lot of effort and a lot of money.”
Indeed, private fundraising contributed nearly $11 million to the project, which included city bond issues totaling $28 million, more than $19 million in federal funding and nearly $3 million in New Markets federal tax credits.
“This (fundraising) was done at a time when you had to believe,” Peebles said, recognizing the Malcolm McLean and James McLean families, Clara McLean and the Monte L. Moorer Foundation as lead donors.
Dow thanked Jones for his steadfast leadership to continue GulfQuest’s vision through rough economic times marred by devastating hurricanes and the BP oil spill.
“Our ship was almost not afloat … and (Jones) brought it back to life,” Dow said during the christening before urging those present to throw their continued support behind current Mobile Mayor Sandy Stimpson “to take this up to a much, much higher level.”
Stimpson, in turn, said his administration “has and will help GulfQuest realize its potential” because the waterfront transformation has been a “dream for so many for so many years.”
Although the grand opening festivities for GulfQuest did not begin until an 8:30 a.m. “Tossing off the Bowlines” ceremony Saturday, the Alabama Tourism Department has already named the museum its 2016 Attraction of the Year.
“Like any fine museum, GulfQuest will be very educational. But it will also provide hours and hours of immersive activities. We think people from all over the country will understand just why the Gulf of Mexico is truly ‘America’s Sea,’” Zodrow said.
The museum will be open on Saturday from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., and on Sunday from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Regular GulfQuest operating hours are Tuesday–Friday, 9 a.m.–5 p.m.; Saturday, 9 a.m.–6 p.m.; and, Sunday, 11 a.m.–6 p.m. Click here for admission prices. For general information about GulfQuest, click here or call 251-436-8901.
