San Mateo's CuriOdyssey constructing new Bay building

“The theme here is that the location itself is in nature and has a lot to teach us about science,” Lynne Esselstein, director of the campus capital program with CuriOdyssey, said. “It’s an observational phenomenon related to the Bay setting, the natural world and the weather.”

The 3,400-square-foot building has 1,200 square feet dedicated to hands-on science exhibits featuring fluid dynamics and weather inspired by the adjacent Bayside, with 1,400 square feet for classrooms and meeting lab space. The building features floor-to-ceiling Bay views and roll-up garage doors that go into the Coyote Point Recreation Area. The building will have a fog bowl to feel the coldness of the marine layer, a wave machine and a data visualization exhibit offering real-time information about airplanes landing at San Francisco International Airport. Exhibits are all built by CuriOdyssey staff.

“The exhibit will focus on things that exist already with data collection but will be gathered in one place so children and their families can grasp it all while they look at this view,” Esselstein said.

Additional special events can also take place with the added space outside of its core educational mission, with CuriOdyssey often holding weddings and other business events when space is available. Esselstein said an opening to the public could occur in March.

The foundational construction itself was a testament to the planning and design of CuriOdyssey. Trucks from Southern California delivered nine modular units to the site Sept. 28. Each modular unit spent 14 days on the factory line. Crews then put the units together and completed construction in less than nine hours using a hydraulic crane to place it on the foundation. Modular units are pre-made structures delivered to a construction site to be quickly assembled to form a final building design. The units used for the building weighed around 18,000 to 20,000 pounds each.

The building is part of expansion plans for the nonprofit science museum with a zoo in Coyote Point Park in San Mateo. In 2021, it built a 4,000-square-foot playground designed to be inclusive for all people, including people with disabilities. The physics in action playground is part of a large-scale project to expand the CuriOdyssey campus with eight buildings to address needs, like exhibit gallery space and workshop classrooms. Once the Bay Gallery & Labs opens in early 2023, CuriOdyssey will fundraise to build an otter exhibit. It is currently identifying design partners for the new otter exhibit. The organization uses its master plan campus model as it plans for the future. CuriOdyssey wants to open eight buildings, with plans to raise money for each one in a staged manner to remain open.

“This is part of a long-term plan to build new spaces on the campus,” Esselstein said of the new building.

curtis@smdailyjournal.com

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