OKC National Memorial & Museum announces expansion: What to know ahead of 30th anniversary
A new expansion for the Oklahoma City National Memorial & Museum was announced Wednesday at the downtown facility renowned for commemorating one of the worst acts of terrorism in the U.S.
The upcoming space, called "Forward," is important to continue the mission and future growth of the memorial with education and programming as the memorial marks the 30th anniversary of the attack on Oklahoma City.
"The Memorial Museum must plan for the future as it teaches the brutality of the attack with the tenderness of the response, the senselessness of violence, and how a Day of Darkness turned into Years of Light," organizers said in a news release.
Dr. Susan Chambers, chair of the memorial board, said the expansion would feature a new orientation theater, exhibit enhancements, upgraded security features, additional elevators, a state-of-the-art civics lab, a new film studio and a redesigned store.
"This Forward, much like in a book, gives you a glimpse of what you are to experience," Chambers said.
The expansion is expected to be a three-story, $12 million structure built against the current building.
"We've worked really hard teaching STEM the past decade, but we're now also committed to the national effort to do a better part in teaching civics," Chambers said. "We will have a collaboration space for groups wanting to learn how all levels of government and the people work together through the Oklahoma City bombing and why even 30 years later we stand as an exemplary example of working together across the agencies to assure to protect our country."
In detailing a timeline, board members with the memorial said they hope to officially start construction this fall, but added much of the planning for design and budgets will need to be aligned.
Architectural teams involved in the original bombing memorial design will return to help make Forward a reality.
Patrick Gallagher and his team from Gallagher & Associates from Washington, D.C., will work on the interior design and the inside experience, while Hans and Torrey Butzer will work on the exterior design and other enhancements.
Gallagher said that much of the motivation for creating the museum was in 'taking a tragic event and transforming the impact and meaning into dynamic educational programming,' something he said is needed now more than ever in the wake of growing extremism within the U.S. and around the world.
'Sadly, we are not seeing any decline in terrorist events,' Gallagher said. 'In fact, they're increasing globally. It's Oklahoma City's responsibility to use what they have learned to help people understand how to process these events and understand what our responsibility is as a member of a global community.'
More: OKC National Memorial Museum begins statewide 'Journey of Hope' to note 30th anniversary
The Oklahoma City bombing was a domestic terrorist truck bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building on April 19, 1995. It remains the deadliest act of domestic terrorism in U.S. history, and is the second-deadliest act of terrorism to occur in the U.S. overall, surpassed only by the Sept. 11 attacks in 2001.
The Oklahoma City bombing occurred at 9:02 a.m. April 19, 1995, and resulted in the deaths of 168 people, injured more than 680 others, and destroyed more than one-third of the building, the rest of which had to be demolished.
Two anti-government extremists and white supremacists, Timothy McVeigh and Terry Nichols, planned and executed the bombing. The bombers were tried and convicted in 1997. Sentenced to death, McVeigh was executed by lethal injection on June 11, 2001, at the U.S. federal penitentiary in Terre Haute, Indiana. Nichols was sentenced in his federal case in 1998 and a state case in 2004 to life in prison.
OKC bombing, 3 decades later: Memories of resilience, compassion amid a painful moment in history
Creation of the Oklahoma City National Memorial was a cooperative effort involving many people and all levels of government. In 1995, then-Oklahoma City Mayor Ron Norick appointed a 350-member task force to explore ways to remember the tragedy and honor those killed.
On April 19, 2000, the fifth anniversary of the attack, the Oklahoma City National Memorial was dedicated on the site of the former Murrah Building, commemorating the victims of the bombing. Remembrance services are now held every year on April 19, at the time of the explosion.
More: Nearly 30 years later, a new documentary shows the OKC bombing to a new generation
The memorial museum is an interactive learning experience occupying the west end of the former Journal Record Building. It takes visitors on a self-guided tour through the story of the bombing, as well as the world's response in the aftermath. The museum uses interactive displays, as well as hundreds of hours of video and artifacts, and admission maintains the outdoor memorial.
This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: OKC National Memorial & Museum announces plan for expansion
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