Groundbreaking takes place for El Paso Children’s Museum touted as ‘shining addition’ to downtown

EL PASO, Texas -- A groundbreaking ceremony was held Thursday for construction of the new El Paso Children’s Museum, which Mayor Dee Margo predicted will be a "shining addition" to El Paso’s downtown area.

The four-story, 70,000-square foot museum is being built at 201 W. Main, behind the El Paso Museum of Art and on the west side of the Mills Plaza Parking Garage.

Prior to the turning of shovels, which a group of children participated in alongside local dignitaries, award-winning international architects from the firm Snohetta unveiled the final building design.

"The building’s singular geometries immediately set it apart from the El Paso skyline. The base is wrapped in glass, providing enticing interior views. The building is topped by a rippling succession of barrel vaults that soar to a cloud-like crown, like the clouds that hover over the El Paso Borderland," said Elaine Molinar, a native El Pasoan and Snøhetta’s  managing director.

The museum project is a joint effort being undertaken by the El Paso Community Foundation and the City of El Paso.

Construction of the museum is being funded, in part, through a Quality of Life Bond measure overwhelmingly approved by El Paso voters back in 2012.

You can watch the entire groundbreaking ceremony in the video player below. And beneath the player you can see various renderings showing the museum's design.