A million gallons of saltwater are coursing through what used to be a stand-up comedy club. And a power plant. And a night club.
The Greater Cleveland Aquarium now occupies most of the Powerhouse in the Flats thanks to New Zealand-based Marinescape.
The company chose Cleveland to develop its first free-standing aquarium in the U-S because there isn’t another one within four-and-a-half hours.
Now, low lighting and steel girders surround huge windows that look into the artificial deep sea where sharks swim their course around a fake shipwreck. With opening day imminent, crews are hanging signs, polishing arched windows and laying down the last few feet of carpet for the sea tube – which is longer than those in the higher profile Chicago and Baltimore aquariums.
Aquarium developer Marinescape lured Tami Brown away from Positively Cleveland last fall to run the aquarium. A maze of cardboard boxes from four months ago has given way to-
Director Tami Brown says students will be key to the new aquarium. Most of its docents are recent marine biology grads. And classes from local elementary schools are already scheduled to visit and handle baby alligators, take a sea tube walk, and learn about local aquatic life.
“The very first gallery when you walk into the aquarium is focused on Ohio lakes and rivers. So certainly there are game fish that you hear about. Probably you’ve seen it on your plate a few times. Perch, walleye, that sort of thing. But we also have here these beautiful little river dwellers that usually hide under rocks and streams and they have patterns and little bits of bright color and people don’t normally get to see them. So I’m so excited that people get to discover what’s in our own back yard and how beautiful it is. And then, hopefully, long-run, really care about keeping our waterways clean.”
The power station sits next to the Nautica Stage and was built in the 19th century. Five aquarium specialty artists, along with carpenters, welders and ichthyologists, converted 70,000 square feet of the red brick building into a miniaturized sea. The pricetag for the project is $33 million.
Cleveland’s old aquarium was across town near E. 72nd Street and St. Clair. Structural problems forced it to close in 1985 despite brisk attendance.