The New York Power Authority (NYPA) has added a fourth visitor center, which is located at 35 Utica Zoo Way in Utica. Small, guided tours are available by reservation on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. (PHOTO CREDIT: NYPA FLICKR)
UTICA, N.Y. — The New York Power Authority’s (NYPA) newly constructed NY Energy Zone visitor center in Utica has opened its doors. It’s an admission-free facility that provides an “immersive, interactive, state-of-the-art museum experience” focused on the past, present, and future of energy in New York state, NYPA contends in a release. The facility on […]
UTICA, N.Y. — The New York Power Authority’s (NYPA) newly constructed NY Energy Zone visitor center in Utica has opened its doors.
It’s an admission-free facility that provides an “immersive, interactive, state-of-the-art museum experience” focused on the past, present, and future of energy in New York state, NYPA contends in a release.
The facility on May 10 opened for small-guided tours on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, following New York State indoor family-entertainment center guidelines for COVID.
The 15,000-square-foot facility includes exhibits that simulate flying a drone to check power transmission lines, controlling electricity on a model energy grid, operating a simulated power plant, and building a table-top micro power grid, along with other activities designed to teach visitors about energy and electricity in New York.
Visitors can also see “Imagination!” — the first movie of its kind utilizing 3-D MAGI film generation by famed cinematographer and director Douglas Trumbull. He is known for his visual-effects photography in the films “2001: A Space Odyssey” (1968) and “Blade Runner” (1982). The 3-D movie seeks to inform viewers about Nikola Tesla and his “lasting contributions” to the electricity system of today.
NYPA has added a reservation system that allows for scheduling limited, 60-minute guided tours. To reserve a tour, you can also call (315) 792-8720 or email EnergyZone@nypa.gov.
The visitor center, which is affiliated with the Power Authority’s Frederick R. Clark Energy Center — the hub of its statewide power transmission control center located in Marcy — was dedicated to former NYPA Chairman John Dyson at a naming ceremony held April 23.
“Utica is a natural location for this museum of energy because it complements the work of our Frederick R. Clark Energy Center, NYPA’s system-wide energy transmission complex in Marcy,” Oneida County Executive Anthony Picente, Jr., a NYPA trustee, said. “I am grateful to my colleagues at the Power Authority for their vision in conceiving and developing this magnificent facility in Oneida County that will inspire our next generation of energy leaders and benefit all New Yorkers for decades to come.”
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