The Oklahoma City National Memorial and Museum, which pays tribute to the 1995 domestic terrorism attack that killed more than 160 people, broke ground last week on a $12 million addition called Forward.
The museum stated this about its forthcoming, 10,000-square-foot structure:
Foreword introduces new and expanded programming spaces in an engaging architectural work. Designed to be purposefully inviting and visible, the architecture embraces the site and signals to the community that a new experience awaits. Contemporary security procedures seamlessly greet visitors arriving from an adapted outdoor landscape, pathway system and Children’s Area through two new sets of entry doors.
Visitors ascend to the new lobby level, greeted by curated art from the Murrah Federal Building itself and an overview of the Museum’s ensuing chapters. The light-filled lobby embraces large crowds and small groups, connecting the Outdoor Memorial through vision glass to a relocated Mission Statement. Visitors’ eyes are drawn upwards and outwards. Across from a bright circulation stair and a pair of transparent elevators, visitors are greeted at a newly positioned ticketing desk. Lockers and an adjacent family restroom complement the enhanced visitor experience.
The museum will remain open during the construction. The Forward addition is scheduled to be finished by late 2026.
The museum was built at ground zero of the bomb blast at the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building, opening in 2001. The complex is part of the National Park Service. The site is best know for its Field of Empty Chairs, which represent the victims of the bombing.
The Oklahoma City National Memorial and Museum sits about 1 1/2 miles south of Route 66 and remains a common side trip for those travelers.
(Artist’s rendering of the Forward addition via the Oklahoma City National Memorial)