On August 11, officials from the Lied Children’s Discovery Museum and The Smith Center for the Performing Arts announced a $56 million gift from the Donald W. Reynolds Foundation to the Las Vegas Performing Arts Foundation that will be used to construct the future home of the Discovery Children’s Museum in Symphony Park.

The Smith Center will use $25 million of the grant to construct a 58,000-square-foot building and will award another $18 million directly to the museum to complete the building’s interiors and outfit its exhibit halls with completely new interactive exhibits.  The remaining funds will construct a parking garage and provide for long-term building maintenance.

The project and its plans must first be approved by the Las Vegas City Council before construction can begin.  Current plans call for the museum to open in fall 2012, shortly after The Smith Center’s grand opening earlier that spring.  The museum will open as the Donald W. Reynolds Discovery Center but will shorten its name to Discovery Children’s Museum.

“We believe The Smith Center and the entire complex will have a transformational impact on the quality of arts and entertainment for families in Las Vegas,” said Donald W. Reynolds Foundation President Steve Anderson. “We couldn’t be more pleased with the direction the Performing Arts Center Foundation is taking in partnering with the children’s museum.”

The Lied Discovery Children’s Museum is currently located on Las Vegas Boulevard north of Fremont Street and is
celebrating its twentieth anniversary as an organization serving the Las Vegas community.

“In recent years, our board has been exploring the possibility of relocating the museum from its current location to allow for expansion and growth,” museum Executive Director Linda Quinn said. “Symphony Park provides the ideal synergy between cultural partners while furthering our plans to create a premiere children’s museum experience for the Las Vegas community. The new Discovery Children’s Museum will build upon the great foundation from its past 20 years and create an experience that is fun and engaging, while remaining relevant to the world in which children grow up, today as well as in the next 20 years.”

According to Rita Brandin, Senior Vice President and Development Director for Newland, who, along with the city of Las Vegas, is overseeing development at Symphony Park, the children’s museum is yet another significant landmark project for this emerging downtown community.  “With two iconic cultural facilities – The Smith Center and now the children’s museum – Symphony Park is unquestionably on its way to becoming the epicenter of culture for Southern Nevada.  We are both delighted and grateful to the Reynolds Foundation for their generosity and vision that ensures ongoing access to life-long learning for all current and future generations.”

Photo: Future Discovery Children’s Museum rendering