In its final $60 million phase, groundbreaking will begin January 2015 to construct an additional 120,000-square-feet to the National Museum of the Marine Corps. The total cost of the two-phase project is $75 million with additional spending on installing vehicles, artifacts, and exhibits. The addition to the museum is slated to be completed by 2017, while the installations are expected to be completed by 2020.
In the added space to the museum, there will be a two-screen, 350-seat theater to feature films on the history of the Marines.The museum will add various artifacts from Desert Storm and operations Iraqi Freedom and Enduring Freedom to its collection. There will also be an installation of an unmanned aerial vehicle, AAV-7A1 amphibious vehicle, and Bell UH-1N Huey helicopter.
Currently, the museum illustrates the history of the Marines from its establishment in 1775 to the end of the Vietnam War. The purpose of this project is to focus on the period starting from the end of the Vietnam War to the present. The National Museum of the Marine Corps is located at 18900 Jefferson Davis Highway, Triangle, Virginia.
· Museum honoring the Marines to pick up history in the post-Vietnam era [Washington Business Journal]
- Michelle Goldchain