New Pacific Seas Aquarium is Sound investment

Around here, we call it a good day when we can report back to taxpayers that they got what they paid for, and then some.

Back in 2014, Tacoma voters said yes to a $198 million Metro Parks Tacoma Bond issue. The main selling point: Replace the North Pacific Aquarium, located on the grounds of the Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium, with a state-of-the art Pacific Seas Aquarium.

After 55 years of service, the old model was showing signs of wear. Tacoma voters were left with the choice to fish or cut bait. They chose the fish, and after a sneak peek at the new 35,000-square-foot building this week, we’re confident the public’s trust paid off.

In terms of conservation and recreation, this ambitious public investment will pay dividends for generations.

So, what do four years of planning and more than $51 million get you? A trip to the bottom of the sea is the short answer.

The Pacific Seas Aquarium opens Friday, and if you go, prepare to dive deep into the waters between Baja, California and Mexico. Don’t forget to look up, or you’ll miss the green sea turtles, scalloped hammerhead sharks and spotted eagle rays swimming above.

The best part? No scuba gear required.

John Houck, deputy director at Point Defiance, says the aquarium not only showcases species not found anywhere else, it also provides a new appreciation for the indigenous aquatic life in nearby Puget Sound.

The technical requirements to keep these habitats thriving behind layers of acrylic glass could fill binders; suffice it to say they’re ecologically sound and models of efficiency. Water is pumped from local sources and returned cleaner than it began.

But the building designed by EHDD, the award-winning architectural firm that designed Monterey Bay Aquarium, won’t just be a boon to Tacoma tourism, the marine life on display are part of a wider conservation effort. Think of them as ambassadors with fins, and we need them now more than ever, because our seas and shorelines are in trouble.

Southern resident orcas, Chinook salmon and Pacific herring stocks are declining. Toxins from urban runoff have accumulated in fish. Shellfish beds remain in peril. And most of the 2020 target conservation goals set by the Puget Sound Partnership won’t be attained.

Saving marine life from pollution and overfishing is the leviathan of our time, and it will take more than bumper stickers and public service announcements to move the dial.

“Our Ocean and Our Future,” is the new aquarium’s theme, but there’s nothing preachy about the exhibits. Visitors will leave amazed, not shamed.

Descend the stroller-friendly ramps and soon forget you walk on land. The immersive experience is enhanced with commissioned installations that mimic sunlight playing on the surface of water.

The music invokes calm, though parents can surely expect squeals of glee as little ones go face to face with sea creatures like Oswald the octopus.

From the hands-on tide pool exhibit to touch-screen kiosks, the message of Pacific Seas Aquarium is that change starts first with the imagination fueled best by exploration.

The building is an interactive classroom that will host high school classes for Tacoma School District’s Science and Math Institute, plus visiting students from around the region and researchers from around the globe.

It’s a reminder that some of the world’s best treasures are found in our oceans, and it’s our shared responsibility to take care of them. Famed oceanographer Jacques Cousteau said it best: “People protect what they love.”