5 Museum Development Projects In Houston That You Want To Check Out

Houston’s museums, already among the best in the country, are about to get even better. If you’re interested in Houston’s maritime history, fine arts or Texas culture, you’ve got much to look forward to in the next few years. And if you don’t think you’re interested in these topics, maybe a visit to one of the new facilities below will change your mind.

The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston

Good news, art lovers! The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, is hard at work on its new $450M campus, scheduled for completion in 2019. The first phase of the project will include an 80k SF building for the Glassell School of Art. Besides providing space for the Glassell School’s junior and adult schools, the building will have a roof garden that overlooks the entire Museum of Fine Arts complex. Also included in the initial phase is the Brown Foundation Plaza.

The Houston Maritime Museum

It’s fitting for a maritime museum to be near water, wouldn’t you say? The Houston Maritime Museum thinks so. At the end of the year, it will be moving from its location in the Museum District to 2201 Dorrington St, which is so close to the Port of Houston that museum visitors will be able to tour the port from a boat docked right outside the museum. The $50M new facility will also boast touch-screen displays and a long outdoor pool for model boat races.

The Pearl Fincher Museum of Fine Arts

Spring’s Pearl Fincher Museum of Fine Arts will begin work on a second location near the Grand Parkway and Highway 249. At 50k SF, the new facility will be considerably larger than the Spring museum and will house its own permanent collections. Both facilities will be part of the Cypress Creek Cultural District.

The Lone Star Flight Museum

Galveston's Lone Star Flight Museum is planning a $35M, 130k SF new facility at Houston's Ellington Airport. The new museum, which will be built by DE Harvey, will offer interactive exhibits on STEM concepts relevant to flight. It will also provide information on the history of flight and Texas' role in the aviation industry. Completion of the facility is scheduled for early 2017.

The Nau Center for Texas Cultural Heritage

Thanks to the current tough economic climate and rapidly escalating construction costs, development of the Nau Center for Texas Cultural Heritage was put on hold only four months after its groundbreaking. But never fear: according to Annise Parker, Houston’s former mayor, construction will resume “when the time is right.” Once built, the Downtown Houston museum will include interactive exhibits that showcase southeast Texas’ 29 counties and their people, history and events.