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OREGON COAST Charleston's Marine Life Center eyes spring opening Museum and aquarium set to be a tourist draw Comment By Carly Mayberry The Coos Bay World MailTribune.com By Carly Mayberry The Coos Bay World Posted Feb. 1, 2015 at 12:01 AM By Carly Mayberry The Coos Bay World Posted Feb. 1, 2015 at 12:01 AM » Social News CHARLESTON — Seven years in the making, the Charleston Marine Life Center is set to unveil an up close and personal view of Oregon coastal life this spring. Its opening will mark the debut of the only museum and aquarium of its kind on the Southern Oregon coast. The center, which is located adjacent to Pacific Seafood fish processing plant and across from the Oregon Institute of Marine Biology campus, will include five separate galleries spread across two stories. Between them, they will focus on coastal ecosystems, deep-water habitats, marine mammals, fisheries and diverse sea life with genuine artifacts and ocean habitat supplied by the institute's teaching labs. The project has been totally funded by donations. Some of the unique features of the Charleston Marine Life Center will be the views of the local fishing fleet and nearby docks where fish and crab are offloaded. “It's going to be a jewel for the coast of Oregon, especially for Coos Bay, North Bend and the Charleston area,” said Coos County Commissioner Bob Main. “It'll be another destination attraction for tourists as well as a wonderful tool for our kids in the schools.” Specifically, the aquarium/museum, which has been under design and construction since 2008, will feature a marine ecosystems gallery with a built-in wall and free-standing tanks. A marine mammal gallery with centerpiece exhibits of a re-articulated Orca whale skeleton and a 35-foot-long juvenile California gray whale will greet visitors upon entering. The whale skeleton was assembled by volunteer students and community members. Other features include a sperm whale skull, a hands-on shallow touch tank with starfish, other sea creatures and video displays and computerized touch screens that bring up footage of the ocean floor and specific dive sites. Artifacts developed in collaboration with local Native American tribes show the traditional uses of marine resources in the area. “It was important to me to explain the story of the Charleston fisheries and the fact that we're in an area with a big presence of Native Americans and that we're on or close to their ancestral lands,” said OIMB director Craig Young. “You feel like you're part of the harbor ... like you're on a ship.” The center is the brainchild of Young, who collaborated with local designer Butch Schroeder. Together, the two were able to design the building with one wing supported on cantilevers over the old Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife salmon ladder channel to include a working view of Charleston's seafood industry and views of the bay and harbor. There's an open-air covered fisheries gallery that will allow visitors to see the comings and goings of fishing vessels while interpretive panels will show the process that various local fisheries undergo. The 6,000-square-foot building covered in cedar shakes to blend in well with the rest of the campus. It's a far cry from the 20-by-30 foot pavilion with a few aquarium tanks that once resided there. Schroeder, who utilized the engineering services of Stuart Wood, said he and Young adapted the building's design to accommodate its space limitations. “It never really worked and then we got together to see if we could cut a wall in that building and make it more functional while assessing what was there,” Schroeder said. What resulted was a structure matching the rest of the OIMB campus but distinct enough to set it apart from the other buildings. “I've always been an advocate of doing things that fit with our regional area,” Schroeder said. In terms of the interior space and how visitors would circulate through the museum, he said, “You try to bring people through a building to go from space to big to small to dark to light, with displays so when you come in you have a feel for the entire situation.” With a grant from Pacific Power's Blue Sky Initiative, the center has a 10 kW Xzeres wind turbine that is expected to provide all of its electrical needs. Donors for the facility included the Ford Family Foundation, Three Rivers Foundation, the Coquille Tribal Community Fund and the Royal Caribbean and Celebrity Cruise Lines Ocean Fund, among others. The Oregon Community Foundation and the Coos County commissioners also contributed, along with many individual large and small donations from University of Oregon alumni and local citizens. For the past two years, the institute has conducted a funding drive dubbed “Adopt a Bone,” where donors will have their names permanently displayed on a plaque in the marine mammal gallery. Young said that to date almost $1 million has been raised through donations, with $800,000 spent on construction and $200,000 spent on the aquarium and exhibits. Ideally, he hopes to raise an additional $30,000 to finish it in a timely manner and incorporate some of the final features that are needed. Craig Young talks about the many tanks with life marine creatures that will fill the new Charleston Marine Life Center. Some will be open with critters to touch and many more where you can view the live animals. Schroeder credited Young with not only his design vision but with what he's accomplished with the amount of funding he's had to work with. “He's managed to get this building up on a fairly decent shoestring budget ... that's quite an achievement when you're dealing with governmental things,” Schroeder said. While Young oversees the final touches on the gallery signs and displays, he looks forward to visitors experiencing the amazing ecosystems found in deeper water off the Oregon coast firsthand. “Charleston and Coos Bay have outstanding access to marine habitats. It's just a perfectly situated place to study marine biology and a remarkable opportunity for students,” Young said. “And it's going to be a beautiful small museum.” By Carly Mayberry The Coos Bay World MailTribune.com By Carly Mayberry The Coos Bay World Posted Feb. 1, 2015 at 12:01 AM » Comment or view comments Reader Reaction » STAY INFORMED Email NewsLetter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. Southern Oregon Directory Featured Businesses Loading... 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