APG Discovery Center awarded State grant for Preview Center build-out

The Board of the APG Discovery Center is pleased to announce that successfully advocated for and will receive state funding to launch Phase 1 of the Discovery Center – the “Preview” Center at the Aberdeen MARC Train Station. The Preview Center will serve as a visitor’s center, work space, exhibit area, and will provide funders and visitors a small taste of what will be found at the permanent Discovery Center in 2022. The Preview Center is expected to cost about $520,000, and will be paid for by a combination of state and local grants, corporate sponsorships, fundraising campaigns, and donations. The state grant, coming to the APG Discovery Center in the form of a bond bill (HB 970), will provide $250,000 toward the cost of renovating 1200-SF in the Aberdeen train station. Read about it in the APG News and the Dagger. Delegate Mary Ann Lisanti sponsored the legislation and was responsible for Harford County receiving this grant.

Phase 2 of this project will result in the opening of a permanent Discovery Center with 10,000-SF of exhibit space, serving over 55,000 visitors each year, and costing approximately $2.7 million. In Phase 3, the Center will grow to 20,000 SF serving 100,000 visitors each year. These estimates are supported by a feasibility study commissioned last year.