The carousel is a “catalysing project” to help revitalise the “Battleground Parks District” of Greensboro, North Carolina.
The carousel will be situated right outside the centre and will be ready for use in March 2018.
“It is going to be stunningly beautiful,” says Glenn Dobrogosz, CEO of the Greensboro Science Centre. “There are lots of accredited zoos and museums that operate carousels and, based on our research, they are all profitable, all successful and the community just loves them. They become iconic.”
Samet Corp. will be responsible for the building that houses the carousel. Ohio-based Carousel Works will build the carousel itself. The first component, a seat in the shape of the Greensboro Grasshopper’s mascot, has already been unveiled.
According to Dobrogosz, the carousel is also designed to be a “catalysing project” to help revitalize a 400-acre area around the centre. It’s known as the “Battleground Parks District” and alongside the science centre includes the Guilford Courthouse National Military Park, Country Park and Forest Lawn Cemetery.
The military park and the science centre both draw hundreds of thousands of visitors. However Dobrogosz says, “We have this dead space in the middle with Country Park. It’s a park that has kind of lost its lustre and needs a reinvention.” So the plan is to turn it into a central park with art and sculpture and landscaping, zip lines and treescapes. “This carousel seems like the perfect way to kick-start that momentum,” he says.
The carousel is also expected to help the centre pull in 500,000 visitors per year (it currently sees around 400,000 visitors annually). “It all ties into a bigger economic development package, but through the spectrum of history, science and recreation,” says Dogbrogosz.
Finance has been provided by the Rotary Club of Greensboro and the carousel will be operated by the Greensboro Science Center.
Images courtesy of the Greensboro Science Center and the Rotary Club of Greensboro.
https://www.bizjournals.com/triad/news/2017/08/08/greensboro-science-center-planning-2m-stunningly.html
