Ice age fossil site in Los Angeles to undergo $240m renovation
The Story
The La Brea Tar Pits and Museum in Los Angeles, home to remains of over 2 million ice age plants and animals, will close in July for a two-year, $240m renovation. The project, led by New York design firm Weiss/Manfredi, aims to transform the museum and surrounding park into a more visible and accessible indoor-outdoor experience.
Key Facts
- The La Brea Tar Pits and Museum is the only urban, active ice age excavation site in the world.
- The museum has been open since 1977 and sits on a 5.2-hectare (13-acre) public park.
- The $240m renovation will keep the current museum structure but reimagine interior exhibition, research, and learning spaces.
- New features include walkways, bridges, an outdoor classroom, and replacement of tropical plants with native Pleistocene-era plants.
- The Lake Pit with its fiberglass mammoth family will be maintained.
- The Fossil Lab will retain its interior windows so visitors can watch scientists at work.
- Exhibits will be updated with dynamic dioramas, and the extinction story of megafauna will be highlighted.
- 90% of the fossil remains found are from carnivores or scavengers, supporting the predator trap theory.
- Approximately 59 mammal species and 135 bird species are among the over 2 million excavated specimens.
- The design contest awarded the project to Weiss/Manfredi in 2023, following a public process started in 2019.
Conflicting Reports
No conflicting reports identified in the source article.
Still Unclear
No open questions identified in the source article.
Misconceptions
No widespread misconceptions addressed in the source article.
Key Figures
- Emily Lindsey: associate curator and excavation site director at the La Brea Tar Pits and Museum.
- Lori Bettison-Varga: president and director of the Natural History Museums of Los Angeles County.
Sources: The Guardian
