The center will open in December 2003 to coincide with the centennial of the Wright brothers' historic flight at Kitty Hawk, N.C. It is named for International Lease Finance Corp. founder and Chief Executive Officer Steven F. Udvar-Hazy, who contributed $65 million for the facility.
The total cost of the project-for design, site infrastructure, construction, move-in and start-up-is expected to be $300 million. The Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center was designed by Hellmuth, Obata + Kassabaum, the same architectural firm responsible for the Museum's building in Washington.
"With the signing of this contract, the Udvar-Hazy Center moves one step closer to completion and exemplifies the value of partnering public and private interests to enable major museum initiatives," said Smithsonian Secretary Lawrence M. Small. It will be the first Smithsonian building to be constructed with funds raised from the private sector. The project, however, is supported by $34 million in infrastructure funding from the Commonwealth of Virginia. The Smithsonian received $8 million in federal funds for its design.
The $125 million building contract covers the first phase of construction, which will include the aviation hangar, education center, large-screen theater, food court, museum stores, visitor orientation area and observation tower. The 10-story aviation hangar will be comparable in length to 2 ½ football fields. It will feature three accessible viewing levels with a 4-story walkway that will give visitors the sensation of soaring among the historic aircraft on display. Interactive devices, videos and flight simulators will enhance the visitor experience.
"Since opening in 1976, the National Air and Space Museum has welcomed some 211 million visitors, making it the world's most popular museum," said Gen. John R. "Jack" Dailey, director of the museum. "Currently only 10 percent of the collection is on exhibit," Dailey said, "but when the Udvar-Hazy Center opens, it will house a collection without equal-the most diverse and historically significant collection of its kind."
The Udvar-Hazy Center is expected to draw some 3 million to 4 million visitors a year. The roof of the aviation hanger--supported by arches--will reach an outside height of 103 feet. Free of columns, this vast open space will permit the display of more than 200 aircraft, among them an SR-71 Blackbird, the B-17 Swoose, a Phantom F-4 fighter and the B-29 Superfortress Enola Gay.
Subsequent phases of construction will include the space hangar, to showcase the space shuttle Enterprise and some 130 other significant space vehicles, as well as a state-of-the-art restoration hangar, an archives center and study collection wing. These additional phases are also set to open in December 2003, provided the necessary fund-raising efforts are successful.
Founded in 1937, Hensel Phelps Construction Co. has built a wide range of highly visible projects such as airports, educational and healthcare structures, entertainment and retail complexes, office buildings, sports arenas, mass transportation facilities and other types of developments, including the Regional Airlines Midfield Terminal at Washington Dulles International Airport. Its Mid-Atlantic regional office, headed by Robert E. Daniels, executive vice-president, is located in Chantilly, Va.