Regnier Family Wonderscope Children's Museum adds final touches, opens today

Final touches are complete on the new, $15 million Reigner Family Wonderscope Children's Museum, which is set to open today at 433 East Red Bridge Road in Kansas City, Mo.

Kansas City’s newest 30,000-SF children’s museum features ten dynamic exhibit spaces focusing on STEAM (science, technology, engineering, arts and math) activities, birthday party rooms, classroom spaces and a half-acre of outdoor educational fun.

Western Specialty Contractors’ Great Plains Roofing and Sheet Metal Branch of Kansas City, Kan. installed the “cherry on top” of the eye-catching building, which included the colorful, metal wall panels above the museum’s exterior entrance, along with Thermoplastic Polyolefin (TPO) roofing.

A crew of six workers installed the .125 aluminum plate wall system, manufactured by Northclad, which consisted of 210 brightly colored, angled panels that averaged 7 feet tall with widths ranging from 2 inches to 6 feet. Western used a series of subgirts to attach the metal panels to the building’s façade and also installed 800 SF of Firestone fully-adhered TPO roofing over the top of the panel area. The installation was completed in twenty days.

Western branch manager Rod O’Bannon said installing the panels in the complex pattern, which were designed by the Dimensional Innovations, posed the greatest challenge on the project.

“The museum will be recognizable by its unique façade, so we had to make sure we had it right. Each panel had custom angles, so aligning them correctly with equal spacing was a challenge, but our experienced crew did an outstanding job,” said O’Bannon.

General contractor, McCownGordon Construction began construction on the musuem in March 2018. Other project partners included Haizlip Studio, MIG Portico, Paul Orselli Workshop and CBRE.

For the past 30 years, the museum has resided in the former Flint Elementary School building in Shawnee, Kan.

Read previous, related MWM story here from June 2020: Construction progressing at Wonderscope Children's Museum

New $15 million Wonderscope Children's Museum breaks ground

Wonderscope Children’s Museum has begun construction of its new $15 million site located at 433 E. Red Bridge Rd. at the Red Bridge Shopping Center in Kansas City, Missouri.

The expansive 30,000 SF museum will more than triple their current 9,000 SF location in Shawnee, Kansas.

Kansas City’s newest children’s museum will feature ten exhibit spaces focusing on STEAM (science, technology, engineering, arts and math) activities, birthday party rooms, classroom spaces and a half-acre of outdoor educational space.

“It’s been three years in the making, and we are so excited to share the news that Kansas City will soon have a new premiere children’s museum,” said Roxane Hill, Wonderscope executive director.

The new exhibits are designed by a world-class team of experts experienced in creating one-of-a-kind children’s museums. The themed “Crossroads of Kansas City” creation stations include rivers and railways, food, sports, music and nature and will allow children to explore art and science, generating the STEAM that moves Wonderscope forward.

In February 2017, Wonderscope launched a $15 million capital campaign for the new museum. Major donors include The Regnier Family Foundation which has been a long-time generous supporter of Wonderscope and its mission.

Wonderscope is also launching a community campaign creating the opportunity for KC residents to embrace the new museum filled with fun and educational activities. By making tax-deductible contributions, individuals and families can help build Wonderscope’s new home and forever be remembered on a unique commemorative wall display inside the new building. To participate, visit: https://www.wonderscope.org/a-new-place-to-play/capital-campaign

The project development team includes Haizlip Studio, MIG Portico, Paul Orselli Workshop, Dimensional Innovations, CBRE and McCownGordon Construction.

The new museum is expected to be complete in Fall 2020.

Populous helps lead national esports movement

In a nod to what is being called the “next generation consumer,” Kansas City-based Populous is teaming up with Comcast Spectacor and The Cordish Companies to build Fusion Arena, a $50 million esports and entertainment venue in the heart of the Philadelphia Sports Complex. 

“Fusion Arena represents a watershed moment for the competitive gaming market,” said Populous Senior Principal Brian Mirakian. “We’re taking our 36 years of designing iconic experiences for traditional sports- settings like Yankee Stadium- and applying those same principles of design to the virtual world of gaming.”

The future home to the Philadelphia Fusion esports franchise will have seating for up to 3,500 guests and will serve as the “western hemisphere’s largest ground-up, purpose-built esports venue,” according to a release. 

Earlier this month, Mirakian spoke at SXSW and discussed how esports venues can bring cities and sports teams new revenue streams, increased commerce and development and reinvigorated neighborhoods. 

The rise of esports development and design was a big topic for panelists at MetroWire Media’s Game On event covering sports and entertainment development and design on March 7.

“Esports is exploding as more universities starting to offer scholarships,” said James Dietz of Henderson Engineers, which served as the low-voltage engineering firm of record for the Esports Arlington Stadium. “These facilities require high connectivity and people are starting to look at a specific sport and turn it into more of a fan experience for video gamers out there.”

Overland Park-based Dimensional Innovations also is seeing more opportunity in esports, particularly on college campuses. “We are working on two university gaming/training facilities, so there is definitely a strong trend in that marketplace,” added DI co-founder Justin Wood. 

Populous’ Philadelphia venue will incorporate industrial materials that pay tribute to that city’s heritage as “workshop of the world” and will include a 6,000-square foot public entry and 2000 square feet of interactive media hovering 30 feet above. 

In addition to hosting competitive gaming events and elite training, the arena will be designed to host a variety of live entertainment programming and experiences, offering unique seating experiences such as balcony bars, club seats with USB ports, flexible loge boxes and exclusive suites. Additionally, nearly 10,000 square feet will be dedicated to a training facility, broadcast studio and team offices. 

“Fusion Arena will set the gold standard for competitive gaming and debut on one of the country’s most exciting platforms of sports and entertainment...” said Blake Cordish, Principal of The Cordish Companies, which also served as master developer of the Kansas City Power & Light District.