The corner of Blount and Morgan is looking very colorful these days.

Marbles have demolished the car service shop here and, for the time being, installed this colorful mural and plaza. It’s a dramatic difference for sure and with evening shade is quite pleasant to walk through.

With expansion plans on the horizon, Marbles is sure to grow and I can’t see it being a total shocker that this lot is a holdover for something much grander down the road.

Kudos to the team behind this install though as it’s a great contribution to downtown’s public space!

Marbles Kids Museum has purchased some property nearby with plans to expand. The building adjacent to the courtyard next to Marbles will be home to the expansion. This comes in addition to their plans for another courtyard at the corner of Morgan and Blount Street.

Marbles is a huge asset to downtown Raleigh and there are ways to experience Marbles whether you have children or not. Even today, I think Marbles is a stop for any families visiting downtown Raleigh.

Construction is still years away so when Moore Square has been renovated, the future of this area may turn more family-oriented than it is today. (at least during the daytime)

Marbles has tentative plans for an “urban courtyard” for the corner of Morgan and Blount Streets. The service station that currently sits there would be demolished for the expansion of the kids museum. The Raleigh Public Record has an in-depth look at the plans for this section of downtown.

Designed by Clearscapes Architecture, which has worked with Marbles in the past on projects such as the 2014 Kid Grid Expansion, the Urban Courtyard would see the entire property razed and turned into an outdoor green space.

*Development Beat: Major Work Wednesday

An expansion being done at the Marbles Kid’s Museum. The Kid Grid exhibit will go here, partly thanks to a $1 million grant from ABB, Inc. The Raleigh Public Record reported on this back in July.

Marbles President Sally Edwards said Kid Grid will teach children about the Smart Grid and will be a full representation of the energy system. Edwards said the goal of the exhibit is to introduce children to science and math and encourage them to become engineers in the future.

*Commissioners Approve Loan for Marbles

Here’s a video from WRAL interviewing Edwards about the planned exhibit back during its announcement in 2012.

Click here to see the video on YouTube.

Thanks for the tip, Brian.