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Port Discover’s a Bargain for Elizabeth City
Credit: Bonnie*B |
I am thrilled by City Council’s decision to fund the expansion of the Port Discover Science Center over the next five years. This is a wise and prescient use of public funds that will benefit the local community by further beautifying downtown, contributing to Elizabeth City’s growing intellectual character, and offering children a place where they may immerse themselves in self-directed exploration.
Expanding Port Discover Keeps Downtown Beautiful
The recent migration of the Pasquotank Arts Council and the Encore Theater into the Arts of the Albemarle building has had the unfortunate side effect of leaving a huge, prominent empty space in downtown Elizabeth City’s facade. The mere $15k a year necessary to allow Port Discover to expand into this vacancy is a bargain price for preventing another big empty storefront from marring downtown EC. Display windows filled with beautiful science exhibits and smiling children will create a welcoming atmosphere and experience that visitors will take home with them, encouraging others to visit here.
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Port Discover Contributes to EC’s Intellectual Character
Downtown EC will have large centers for the sciences and the humanities right across from each other on Main Street, and historical pursuits just a few blocks down the street at the Museum of the Albemarle. Add Elizabeth City State University’s sizeable campus residing just a mile down the road, and you realize there is an incredible amount of academic enlightenment and culture packed into a town with a population of just 20,188 people.
Port Discover Inspires Learning
In Plato’s Republic he argues, “No compulsory learning can remain in the soul… In teaching children, train them by a kind of game, and you will be able to see more clearly the natural bent of each.” Today research shows how true this is, where children will spend hours surfing the web, actively exploring the things that interest them without a clue that they might be learning something in the process. The educational video games, microscopes, and hands-on activities offered at the science center are completely immersive educational experiences. Children will learn more in a few hours of self-directed, hands-on exploration at Port Discover than they would at several days worth of summer school.
A vibrant downtown area is key to bringing visitors and investments into this community. Expanding the Science Center for just $1,250 a month into a vacant building is the perfect use of public funds for keeping EC a place where people will want to visit and maybe even set down roots. Hyper-Mega-Kudos to City Council for their forward thinking in this matter.
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