The aquarium is set to open in April 2020. Ninety percent of the funding for the project came from the city of Gulfport and the state of Mississippi, with the final 10 percent being raised by the aquarium foundation. The people of the city had the vision to see what an aquarium can do for the city." The aquarium will put offices on the second floor. "That is now being retrofitted into where the transit authority has taken it over. "Part of our site has the old Harrison County library, which has also stood vacant since Katrina," Kimmel said. The project has come with the added bonus of drawing new development, including two hotels, retail and office space, in the surrounding area. "The brown is the rivers and bayous of the Mississippi, and the blue really is the Gulf and beyond." "The theme is brown to blue and beyond," Kimmel said. Inside the aquarium is a large exhibit designed to depict the habitat of the Gulf of Mexico, including a riverbed built from concrete and shotcrete. The outdoor exhibits will feature alligators, dolphins, otters, river otters, freshwater animals and an aviary. All of these pieces are different than a normal building, or the same as a normal building with an extra layer." The acrylic had to be ordered much earlier to make sure it arrived on time, and it was ordered from Italy. "The other challenge is the number of pieces and parts that come into play. One must really understand an aquarium has to make sure that animal safety is number one. With the dolphin exhibits, you need to make sure the gates are strong enough so they can't break them down. We take a lot of care that there are no sharp objects. Most staff are just there to care for the animals. If that gets into the system and an animal eats it, the animal could die. When you are assembling HDPE piping, when you weld it together you need to make sure the welds are clean and there are no weld spurs. "You can't do molding - too much scrutiny involved. "Things that are hidden are never hidden that long," Kimmel said. Because of the importance of animal health and safety, extra attention is paid to every detail and quality. Not only must it meet normal building codes, but also the standards of the Association of Zoos and Aquariums. We're really trying to give our guests a real flavor of our animals."īuilding an aquarium comes with added challenges. "The buildings feature metal cladding to give it a great look on the sides, and many of our buildings have a guitar pick shape. "A lot of care is taken from a corrosion and rust standpoint," Kimmel stated.
All pools and waterside rebar are coated.
All piping for the life support systems is HDPE or PVC with stainless steel bolts and flanges to protect it from rust and corrosion. There also will be pumps and generators onsite to maintain the care of the animals in the event of natural disaster. Some of the aquarium's canopies won't reach that standard but will be taken down when high winds are predicted.Īnd since Katrina flood levels topped at 24.5 feet, the elevation of the project site was raised to 25 feet, complemented by a seawall surrounding the aquarium. Like most of the project, the sails are designed to withstand 160 mph winds.
The Nassal Company, based out of Orlando, Fla., is constructing the sails using steel frame with rebar and mesh over them, finished with multiple layers of shotcrete and lastly, paint. We want to integrate these three things that we are based on." Not only the community we live in, but the aquatic community. "Education of our guests, conservation organization and community. "Those are the pillars on which we based our mission statement," Kimmel said. The aquarium, set on a 5.8-acre beachfront campus with exhibits inside and out, features three trademark sails, representing education, conservation and community.
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