Want to build a 250,000-gallon aquarium? You’re going to need a really, really big window

Work is moving along on the centerpiece exhibit for the new aquarium at Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium.

Baja Bay will eventually hold scalloped hammerhead sharks, green sea turtles and spotted eagle rays in a 250,000-gallon tank.

The design is meant to make visitors feel like they’re in a water tunnel with fish swimming over their heads.

On Wednesday, a construction team used a large crane to hoist a huge curved sheet of crystal clear acrylic 70 feet into the air, over the partially constructed building and into place. The acrylic weighs 12 tons and stretches 30 feet long and 15 feet high.

The exhibit is one of 13 in the Pacific Seas Aquarium, which will replace the aging North Pacific Aquarium.

With a $51.6 million price tag, it’s the largest capital project ever undertaken by Metro Parks Tacoma.

The aquarium is set to open in summer 2018.

This story was originally published August 9, 2017 at 1:30 PM with the headline "Want to build a 250,000-gallon aquarium? You’re going to need a really, really big window."