The 27,900-pound acrylic window for the Gulf of Mexico exhibit was installed on July 25, marking significant progress for the aquarium. Photo by Sarasota Drone Guy.

One plus of driving past University Town Center on I-75 is the chance to glimpse the construction of the Mote Science Education Aquarium, or Mote SEA, scheduled for opening in December 2024. What began as a patch of land rich with opportunity has been transformed into a massive structure teeming with dedicated planners and construction workers. On July 25, the Mote team celebrated a critical milestone for the project, the installation of a 27,900-pound piece of acrylic for the Gulf of Mexico exhibit, the largest exhibit space in the new building. “Not everybody gets to design and build a brand new aquarium, so being a part of the entire process, from the beginning stages of chicken scratch of our ideas on paper to working with the architects to see them come to life on paper to now working with the construction company to see them come to life in person, has been fantastic,” said Evan Barniskis, the Mote Aquarium associate vice president.

Barniskis and other Mote staff gathered on the upper deck of PopStroke to watch from afar as a crane lifted the giant viewing window, which is 26 feet long, 17 feet high and 11 inches wide. Designed to celebrate the riches of the Gulf of Mexico, Sarasota’s maritime neighbor, the exhibit provides ample viewing of coral reef formations, sharks, rays, sea turtles and a myriad of fish species. The figure eight-shaped tank will also look out over a multi-purpose room, so that everyone, from students on field trips to banquet attendees, can appreciate the gulf’s natural wonders.

Mote projects that the new aquarium will double the number of annual visitors, drawing in residents from emerging communities along the coast. The building’s central location at UTC off of I-75 increases its accessibility and transports a drop of the ocean to inland communities. “The most amazing thing about this new aquarium will be the technology that we’re able to incorporate into the exhibits as well as the new habitats,” Barniskis added, eager to surprise visitors with this component of the space. “We’ll have an entire gallery dedicated to Pacific waters which will include South American penguins.”

Mirroring a bustling coral reef under the sea, the construction site is a hive of activity full of construction workers and Mote staff proud to experience this important milestone. “It’s a dream come true to be a part of this project,” he said, “and today to see the acrylic windows going into place in the largest habitat is fantastic.”

To learn more about Mote SEA, visit moteoceansforall.org.

The 27,900-pound acrylic window for the Gulf of Mexico exhibit was installed on July 25, marking significant progress for the aquarium. Photo by Sarasota Drone Guy.

Mote SEA