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April 30, 2005
The Fish Tank adds salt
I never cease to be amazed by the Tennessee Aquarium; it has driven the redevelopment of my hometown's downtown almost exactly the way its founders said it would -- if not more so. They exceeded their predicted number of visitors the first year and have continued to do so. Now they've added a large saltwater section (they always had one large saltwater tank, but this is a whole wing).
One of the neat things about the Tennessee Aquarium is that it has a narrative. You start by riding a very tall escalator to the top of the building to a "mountain cove" setting where it mists, real birds fly around chirping, and the otters play (my father still swears he's never seen an otter and that they are just a marketing tool). As you wend your way down through the building to the exit you are following the course of the water from the Appalachias to the Gulf of Mexico, with the displays reflecting that. When they do "rivers of the world" it's in the same area as the main channel of the Tennessee River. It's a very cleverly designed building. I'm looking forward to seeing how they integrate a new wing with a salt water setting, or if they simply declare "heeeeere's the Ocean!"
Posted by CrankyProfessor at April 30, 2005 8:14 AM