Tower News
Crucial Studies Underway
The Tower restoration project is now underway. Although no construction crews are gathering their machines in Menlo Park yet, the all-important preparation has begun. Some of New Jersey's most respected historic preservation professionals are working on three crucial steps in the restoration process.
Funded by a New Jersey Historic Trust grant to Edison Township, Westfield Associates (architects), Watson and Henry (architects and engineers), and Hunter Research (archaeologists) are preparing the site master plan that will guide future work at Menlo Park.
Watson and Henry, who conducted an initial investigation of the Tower's water damage in 1994, are contracted to update that investigation and develop plans to stabilize the Tower. The Tower is an unusual structure, incorporating special concrete materials, components, and building techniques.
Farewell Mills Gatsch, a highly regarded Princeton architectural firm, is leading a team of museum specialists, exhibit designers, historians, and archaeologists. Farewell Mills Gatsch designed the New Jersey State House Addition, the New Jersey Museum of Agriculture, and the US Golf Association and Archive buildings. The Museum plan will include themes, exhibit concepts, and interactive programs. Additional elements include virtual digital tours, concept-level plans, and site interpretive plans. Both figuratively and literally, this body of work will result in the blueprints for the future of Menlo Park.
Edison Memorial Tower Corporation Honored
On January 12, 2008, the Metuchen Area Chamber of Commerce honored the non-profit Edison Memorial Tower Corporation as “Organization of the Year,” citing EMTC’s “accomplishments towards the long-term preservation and interpretation of this very important historic site.”