26,000-SF Museum Highlights Statue of Liberty’s History, Influence + Legacy

The new Statue of Liberty Museum on Liberty Island, just steps away from the national landmark for Statue of Liberty-Ellis Island Foundation, Inc., has opened. The museum recently held its grand opening following a dedication ceremony. Phelps Construction Group was the general contractor on the project.

The 26,000-square-foot building provides the estimated 4.3 million annual visitors the opportunity to learn about the Statue of Liberty’s history, influence and legacy through three gallery spaces. The poured-in-place concrete super structure sits above the 500-year flood level. It also includes the Statue of Liberty’s original torch surrounded by frameless glass curtainwalls. The multi-faceted three-dimensional structural steel roof system is clad with an expansive green roof complete with native vegetation and panoramic views of New York City.

Constructing the museum on Liberty Island did not come without its challenges, the biggest being that the island had no access for the materials needed for construction. Additionally, there was no reliable information on what lay below ground and some points of the building are located within 10 feet from the New York harbor. It was required that the project could not interfere in any way with the current visitor experience.

These challenges were overcome by building a temporary dock on Liberty Island within the site, which could be adjusted for the varying tides. Everything ranging from loads of lumber to concrete trucks was shipped by barge from a nearby facility in Jersey City. The firm spent months on the island prior to groundbreaking doing underground investigative work so the project could move forward smoothly once construction began.