The Challenger Space Center to call Phoenix a temporary home
Oct 23, 2017, 4:04 AM | Updated: 10:50 am
(Facebook Photo)
The Challenger Space Center is on the move to a new temporary home in a familiar part of Phoenix. The center, which lost its current facility in Peoria, will move into temporary quarters at Metrocenter mall.
Center Executive Director Beverly Swayman says this allows the center to continue its mission of being an educational vehicle.
“It’s really going to be a great fit for us to get our programs for the schools up and running very quickly. Which was part of what we were most concerned about,” Swayman said.
Metrocenter is providing needed classroom space so the Challenger Center can continue its classes and workshops for students to learn about the science involved in space exploration. And, they’ve also been allotted some former retail space:
“We’re going to be able to open our Galaxy Gift Shop, which has got incredible space related items for sale. Having that extra space for the months of November and December is going to just be incredible.”
Swayman says the new facility will be ready to launch workshops and after school classes within the next week with the retail space coming on line soon after.
Negotiations to find a full size facility to perform mission simulations and house all of the artifacts and exhibits are on-going.
Challenger Space Center is continuing to look for a West Valley location to re-establish the Center with enough room to house all of their exhibits, displays, artifacts and adequate classroom space for their learning programs.