"When we moved here in 1983, we were pioneers," Wendy Holmes, spokeswoman for the 9,000-sf museum, told GlobeSt.com. Today, its neighbors include the one-year-old Colorado's Ocean Journey, a $100 million aquarium; an REI sporting goods store housed in a renovated transportation museum; Elitch's, a Six Flags Amusement Park; and the Pepsi Center, the new home of the Denver Nuggets basketball team and Colorado Avalanche, Denver's hockey team. The museum is positioned on three acres along Water St.

The museum's 3,700-sf renovation of the 9,000-sf facility, which sits on three acres along Water St., reflects its mission to better serve younger children, setting up interactive playscapes as a result of recommendations from the White Oak Associates in Marblehead, MA., which completed its study three years ago for the Denver museum.

"The bottom line is that we found out that by servicing the newborns to eight year olds, it would secure our future, as well as serve an unmet need in the community," says Holmes.Most playscapes previously targeted children from four to 13 years old. The center includes child-oriented, thematic play areas for enhancing large motor skills while providing hands-on exhibits to stimulate sensory awareness, develop language skills and support cognitive development and social and emotional growth.