A new experience is what Heather Preston has been waiting for since she started working at the Calusa Nature Center & Planetarium 10 years ago.
"We’ve been gradually trying to save up for the next phase, and now we have it," said Heather Preston.
The planetarium has been closed since last month for renovations that include new carpets, refurbished seats and Heather's favorite: a new roof.
"The roof is really important because we were having rain in the planetarium," said Preston.
These upgrades come after three people who were taking apart a projector were exposed to a bulb with mercury, Executive Director Eric Raddatz says the planetarium is mercury-free.
"Those kinds of projectors that we were taking apart and donating they don’t make them anymore, so there’s no mercury in the planetarium the only mercury that you will find in the planetarium, is when we talk about the planet Mercury," said Raddatz.
When the doors reopen, staff members just want people to have an out-of-world experience.
"It's going to look more like we’re living in 2024 and less like we’re living in 1986," said Raddatz.
"We do what we do to make the experience important for people and hopefully dry," said Preston.