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Dan Lagiovane,
Media Relations Manager |
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July 2, 2003
Governor releases funds for Dinosaur Hall expansion Pittsburgh … Carnegie Museum of Natural History has received notification from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania that the $15 million capital funding for its Dinosaur Hall renovation will be provided by the state for this project. On November 21, 2002, then Governor Mark Schweiker announced $63 million in capital improvement grants to six Pittsburgh projects, including $15 million for Carnegie Museum of Natural History's Dinosaur Hall renovation. On May 1, 2003, the museum received a letter from Budget Secretary Michael Masch announcing that the funding was temporarily on hold pending justification. The letter stated, the Rendell administration wants to "focus limited commonwealth capital funding toward projects that foster economic development and growth … and have the highest potential for improving Pennsylvania's economic outlook. "To this end, it has become apparent that a re-examination of allocation of commonwealth capital grants is required." The letter also asked for additional information on the immediate and long-term economic impact the project will have on the region. "We were very confident that our Dinosaur Hall renovation project met the criteria and expectations from the state," says Bill DeWalt, then-director of Carnegie Museum of Natural History. "From the outset of the project, we talked not only about the economic benefits that the new hall will have for the museum but for the region as well. We were happy to provide the additional information and would like to thank the Governor and his staff for their quick response." The $15 million is part of $35 million expansion and renovation of Dinosaur Hall. The museum plans to use its world-class collections to create a dynamic new exhibit called "Dinosaurs in Their World," which, for the first time, will integrate dinosaurs into the environments of their respective time periods. Carnegie Museum of Natural History's Dinosaur Hall currently features 15 dinosaur skeletons in a space originally built for one. Several of those dinosaurs are among the world's most famous and most complete specimens-among them, Diplodocus carnegii, or "Dippy," named after Andrew Carnegie, and Tyrannosaurus rex, or "T. rex," which was the first of its species ever found. The expanded dinosaur exhibition, which will occupy nearly three times the space as the current Dinosaur Hall, will depict dinosaurs in their ancient environments. The expansion will include the creation of a dramatic atrium, which will become the physical core of Carnegie Museum of Natural History and reinforce the basic themes of the museum. Dinosaurs currently on display in Dinosaur Hall will be remounted in scientifically accurate, active poses, and a number of previously never before exhibited specimens. The project is currently in the design and content development phase. DeWalt said the timetable has not been affected by the request. "We still are on schedule to have the opening in 2007, the centennial celebration of the opening of Dinosaur Hall." Founded in 1895, Carnegie Museum of Natural History is one of the four Carnegie Museums of Pittsburgh. The museum welcomes more than 450,000 visitors a year and reaches another 150,000 through educational outreach programs. It is the third largest repository of dinosaur fossils in the world, and its total collections exceed 21 million objects, specimens, and artifacts of which 50,000 are on display. Carnegie Museums of Pittsburgh is a collection of four distinctive museums: Carnegie Museum of Art, Carnegie Museum of Natural History, The Andy Warhol Museum, and Carnegie Science Center. In 2001, the museums reached more than 1.67 million people through exhibitions, outreach programs, and special events.
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