Published April 2005

Museum makes big splash
with families

By Linda Thomas
Special to SCBJ

Toddlers controlling a mock Boeing airplane might not realize they’re learning about Snohomish County as they play at the Imagine Children’s Museum in Everett. And the children climbing a rock wall in the new museum don’t know it, but they’re experiencing an effort to make downtown Everett more family friendly.

“For many years the amenities that made downtown inviting and interesting disappeared,” said Aaron Reardon, Snohomish County executive. “The children’s museum is an example of how we’re getting back on track.”

Imagine Children’s Museum is a collection of hands-on exhibits and play structures in a vivid purple and red building at the corner of Hoyt Avenue and Wall Street. It opened in October following a $4.5 million community fund-raising effort that started in 1999.

Photo by Linda Thomas Four-year-old Ben Ruckman of Bothell plays with water pipes in the H2O Discovery area at the Imagine Children’s Museum in Everett, which opened in October following a $4.5 million community fund-raising effort that started in 1999.

At 20,000 square feet, the space is significantly bigger than previous museum locations — first in a Marysville strip mall and then in the Culmack Building on Colby Avenue.

Reardon said the new facility supports Snohomish County’s effort to build an economy that values families, culture and diversity.

“Basic quality-of-life issues are what businesses look for when they locate in a community,” he said.

Everett Mayor Ray Stephanson, who has lived in the community all his life, said providing downtown venues that attract families will be essential over the next decade. The children’s museum and the Everett Events Center, at the crossroads of Hewitt Avenue and Broadway, are just the beginning.

“Company loyalty has changed, and now a person might have six or seven different jobs in their career,” Stephanson explained. “Companies need to be in an appealing environment if they’re going to attract the absolute best workers.”

A job is the last thing on 4-year-old Carson St. John’s mind. He’s more interested in scrambling across a bumpy, brown rock mountain on the museum’s main floor.

As Carson approached the end of the horizontal climbing wall, he shouted “yeah” and jumped to the cushy mat below. A few seconds later, he raced off to see the airplane his dad had built.

“My son knows I’m a machinist at Boeing, so he thinks I put the plane in here,” said Jeff St. John, from Marysville. “He’s having so much fun here; I’ll have to set him straight on that another day.”

The “Imagine Air” plane was created by a volunteer group of retired Boeing workers — the Snohomish and King County Boeing Bluebills.

Volunteers contributed about $400,000 to the museum by donating their time and some materials to construct the plane, as well as a model railroad display, theater costumes and a kid-size barn and farmyard.

“It’s truly a museum assembled by the community, for the community,” said Nancy Johnson, executive director of the Imagine Children’s Museum.

The museum was designed to replicate landmarks and industries important to Snohomish County. It includes a replica of the Mukilteo Lighthouse and a ferryboat that contains a water play area, for example.

“We also wanted to reflect the community’s friendliness, coziness and that feeling that we really do care about children and families,” Johnson said.

“This place is amazing,” said 10-year-old Everett resident Azria Greenlund. “I’m with my friends having fun and learning.”

Attendance at the museum is higher than expected. The board of directors hoped for about 50,000 visitors in the first year. Already, more than 60,000 people have “played” at the museum since it opened only six months ago. Museum membership is also up. While 375 families belonged at the old facility, the Imagine Children’s Museum has gained about 2,000 new members.

Linda Thomas is a free-lance writer based in Seattle.

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