Lack of parking kept thousands from science center : News-Record.com : Greensboro & the Triad's most trusted source for local news and analysis

GREENSBORO — While 63,000 people visited the popular “Bodies Revealed” exhibit at the Natural Science Center during its record-breaking run, an estimated 8,000 to 10,000 people never got in mostly because they had no place to park.

With two new upcoming exhibits, including “Titanic: The Artifact Exhibition,” and objects recovered from the shipwreck, science center officials plan to ask the City Council Tuesday to speed up a planned expansion of the center’s parking lot. The money for 200 spaces new spaces -- at an estimated cost of about $310,000 -- would come from previously approved bond money.

“I worked the parking along with other people and it was sad because you’ve got this massive line of cars on Lawndale, and they just had to sit there because there was no parking,” said Glenn Dobrogosz, the center’s executive director, who blames himself for underestimating the exhibit’s draw.

Organizers had hoped to bring in 25,000 people over the four-month run but attendance had exceeded more than 29,000 people by early February. In just the first two months this year, the center had drawn one-third of last year’s total number of visitors — and by then was turning away 1,000 visitors every weekend. and had maxed out on scheduling group field trips.

See a full report of this story in Tuesday's News & Record

Mick

April 4, 2011 - 1:42 pm EDT

Is there any way to know if some of those folks came back later. It seems reasonable to me that some percentage did indeed return. All in all ..... build the parking lot.

weatherwithyou33

April 4, 2011 - 3:05 pm EDT

So in just two months they already had a third of all the visitors they had last year? And those visitors had to not only pay for the Bodies Exhibit but they also had to pay the Science Center admission fee. And the Science Center just did a great job working out a partnership with TWC. Sounds like they should take some of the extra money they have and build their own parking spaces.

newtogso

April 4, 2011 - 3:25 pm EDT

The lack of 200 spaces is NOT what kept people away...it is lack of an effective response from the Science Center. Do you know how many vacant and underused parking lots are just a bus shuttle away? Town Motors on Battleground, Lawndale Baptist, shopping centers at New Garden and Bryan Blvd., the massive amount of asphalt behind Target off Lawndale. I'm sure there are others. Did or could the employees park off site? I'm a supporter of the Science Center, but, look, there are more urgent needs around town than 200 parking spaces at the science center. Coordinating offsite parking would be more efficient and cheaper. Look, $310k is a lot of money, and it is not the only solution for this problem.

LIBERALLARRY

April 4, 2011 - 3:52 pm EDT

Until we pay down our debt and get out of this mess my party has gotten us in we should hold off spending in this area. As gas pushes up toward $5.00 a gallon we will see less traffic to places like this. Maybe we should drill for oil in the US - oh no not while my party is in power !!

Bosco

April 4, 2011 - 4:01 pm EDT

How about getting a few bids on building that parking lot. Paving and grading contractors are dying. You may be shocked at what a deal you can get now. And do you really need 200 spaces? Sell tickets with date and time slot for attendance like they do at the NC Museum of Art when they have a major exibition.

mahony

April 4, 2011 - 6:07 pm EDT

I go the science center every week with my three kids. I have never had a problem finding a parking place within a very close walking distance. What are they talking about?

gbodane

April 5, 2011 - 6:07 pm EDT

I agree with the previous post. In 30 years of going to the Center I have never had a problem parking. Granted I have had to park and walk from the far reaches of the parking lot somedays. I even took grandchildren to the Bodies Reveled exhibt and had no problem parking. I would recommend that the section for handicap parking have more spaces and be better marked-some people end up turning around because the driver does not realize the spaces are restricted.

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