Cook's Pest Control's longtime dream to create a destination for natural science lovers in north Alabama came to fruition today at the site of its new museum in downtown Decatur.



A year and a half after announcing plans, the Decatur company officially broke ground on the $17 million Cook Museum of Natural Science, a 57,000-square-foot multi-level building that will feature permanent exhibits, a gift shop, cafe and outdoor patio, educational classrooms and a 100-seat theater.



The nonprofit museum, set to open in 2017, is expected to draw at least 214,000 visitors within its first year of operation on 133 Fourth Ave. N.E. Wally Terry, director of economic and community development for the city of Decatur, said the museum is "another piece of the puzzle" in revitalizing downtown.



"It's hard to measure just in terms of economic dollars, but in terms of raising the psyche of the people in our community and believing that they can have these things and do these things if we only work together, that to me is the real benefit we're going to see out of this," he said.

The pest control firm, which is working with Fite Building Co., has committed $7 million and is raising an additional $10 million toward the project. The "Life is Amazing" themed museum should employ 10-12 full-time and 12 part-time workers, as well as volunteers and college interns.

Brian Cook, chief administration officer for Cook's Pest Control and museum board president, said the impact of the facility will be "tremendous" on the downtown area.

"The market research said 58 percent of our 214,000 projected visitors within our first year would be during the week, and then you'll have 21 percent on Saturday and 21 percent on Sunday," he said. "So you're looking at 2,000 people downtown on a weekend. I think it'll have a significant impact on the retail, restaurants and just the attitude of others to invest in the local community especially."

Permanent exhibits will include rivers and streams, caves, mountains and conifers, arctic tundra, deserts, oceans, bayous, hardwood forests, insects, the solar system, live animals, aquariums, rock collections and more. The Cook family plans to construct a large space for traveling exhibits, a butterfly house and an outdoor natural park area in the future.

The Cook Museum of Natural Science will replace the former Car Quest Auto Parts building, which was demolished in May along with other property on a 2.3 acre tract of land near the Princess Theatre and Decatur Public Library.

The original Cook museum opened in the 1960s as a bug collection to train employees. The 5,000-square-foot 13th Avenue exhibit now features more than 1,200 specimens and collections of mounted birds and animals, rocks and minerals, insects, seashells and corals.

Cook said the current museum building will be repurposed when the new facility opens.



Sen. Arthur Orr, R-Decatur, said he is assisting with fundraising in the western part of north Alabama, while Dynetics CEO Marc Bendickson will handle the eastern side. Orr is also Cook's Pest Control's corporate attorney.



"The Cook Museum will not only benefit the Tennessee Valley and the state of Alabama, but it will also improve and have a great influence in the southeastern region," he said.