'On the edge of my seat.' Heritage Museums & Gardens grows with three-building project

Editors Note: This story has been updated to reflect the expected opening date for the welcome center is April 2025.

SANDWICH — Pamela and Peter Barbey's shovels glinted in the sun as they broke ground Wednesday for what will become the new Barbey Family Welcome Center at Heritage Museums & Gardens.

About 50 people gathered to celebrate the Barbeys, who donated $3.5 million to Heritage for the welcome center through the Edwin Barbey Charitable Trust.

"This was an opportunity to help be catalytic. This is a major institution on Cape Cod and will only get better," said Peter Barbey. "We are honored to be a part of that."

Funded by a $15 million capital campaign, the welcome center project calls for a 9,000 square-foot, three-building facility on Heritage's 100-acre property, according to a Heritage press release.

What will the new visitors center include?

The welcome center, designed by GWWO Architects of Baltimore, Maryland, will replace the existing ticket booth, gift shop and restrooms.

The center will include a new ticketing facility; the Clarissa S. Nye Visitor Services Center; a new gift shop with outdoor plant sale area, new restrooms, an expanded outdoor seating area; staff offices; a gathering space in the entry courtyard; and a fountain terrace. A conference room will be available for rent by the public, according to the release.

Construction will begin this month and is slated for completion in April 2025.

According to President and Chief Executive Officer Anne Scott-Putney, the donation will enable Heritage to build a modern, net-zero welcome center.

"We are profoundly grateful for this generous support," said Scott-Putney. "The center will welcome families for generations to come."

'On the edge of my seat' for Heritage's future, said one legislator

Josiah Lilly IV, son of Heritage founder Josiah K. Lilly III, was also at the groundbreaking and joined the Barbeys with a shovel — the same one used by his father to break ground at Heritage "69 years ago," Lilly said. Over time, he's watched Heritage expand, including the construction of the round barn, which was overseen by two Italian master stone makers.

To be able to see Heritage's continued evolution, is "heartwarming," he said.

"I know my father would be absolutely thrilled. It was his wish for Heritage to grow legs and walk on its own and continue to move forward," he said. "He walked every foot of this property more than once and said there’s more opportunities here."

Towards the end of the groundbreaking ceremony, state Sen. Susan Moran, D-Falmouth, said the donation and future construction is an example of generational fortitude.

"I look forward to what's to come," said Moran. "I’m on the edge of my seat like all of you."

The Barbeys also donated $10 million to Cape Cod Hospital in 2021, through the charitable trust.

Rachael Devaney writes about community and culture. Reach her at rdevaney@capecodonline.com. Follow her on Twitter: @RachaelDevaney.

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This article originally appeared on Cape Cod Times: Heritage in Sandwich: What's in the new welcome center?