Renovations Usher in a New Era for Cape Ann Museum, and its Downtown Surroundings

Connectedness is happening in the blocks surrounding CAM’s Pleasant Street campus, a key part of Gloucester’s Main Street area. … As a whole, these clustered blocks promise to breathe exciting new, walkable life to a critical section of downtown.”

Cape Ann Museum in Gloucester—long known for preserving and celebrating the region’s maritime and fishing culture—is preparing for a major transformation that, in turn, will transform a key portion of the downtown area off Main Street. 

When it’s complete, the sweeping $18 million renovation, called CAM-150, will have reinvented the museum’s Pleasant Street downtown campus by spring 2026, making it more accessible and connected to the growing Cape Ann community.  The project's design is being overseen by Boston-based designLAB, the award-winning women-owned architectural firm.

Named for the museum’s 150th anniversary, CAM-150 marks a pivotal moment in the institution’s history. The plans, originally paused in 2019 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, include reimagining five historic downtown buildings into a unified and visitor-friendly campus, as well as expanding the museum’s newer Green Campus.

“CAM-150 is about improving what we have,” said Oliver Barker, director of Cape Ann Museum.  “It’s about maximizing our physical assets to better serve the museum’s purpose of opening up to this community. We are here to serve, but also to celebrate the people and their stories of this place.”

But this idea of connectedness is also happening in the blocks that surround CAM’s Pleasant Street campus, a key part of Gloucester’s Main Street section of the city.  Last year, the former Middle Street YMCA completed a transformation into the modern, expansive John J. Meany Affordable Senior Housing building. 

And, of course, this coming fall, we will see the opening of the spectacular, $29 million renovation of the Sawyer Free Public Library on Dale Street that will become a perfect visual and operational bookend to CAM’s newly renovated Pleasant Street campus when it is unveiled in 2026.  As a whole, these clustered blocks promise to breathe exciting new, walkable life to a critical section of downtown. 

“When people do have the chance to join us in spring of 2026, our reconditioned or revitalized downtown campus is going to be much easier to navigate,” Barker said.

Last year, when the museum announced the renovation, it outlined the vision for a “world-class gallery space” downtown to showcase Cape Ann’s rich history and artistic heritage.  Meanwhile, the Cape Ann Green Campus, off Grant Circle, has expanded its programming for community engagement during the renovation.  This is in addition to the Green Campus’ main function as a hub for the museum’s collection care and storage.

“We’re going to have more exhibition space, and most importantly, the spaces are going to have state of the art museum walls, climate controls, and proper humidity and temperature controls,” said Barker. “This is so important to keeping these precious items stable, and I think it’s going to be a wonderful aesthetic experience for people.”

Barker hopes the changes will elevate Cape Ann’s ability to host a wide range of community and cultural events.

This summer, Barker said he hopes to add Juneteenth celebrations and a Brazilian Independence Day event in early September.  He believes the CAM-150 project will further energize the museum’s programming and deepen its role as a cultural connector.

“We don’t want the museum to remain a time capsule,” he said.  “We want it to reflect and capture the stories of people here today.”

Local business owners are also hopeful about the upcoming changes.  JoAnne Chirico, owner of Good Linens Studio at 130 Main St., said she’s optimistic that the renovations will drive more foot traffic downtown.

“It’s a great community,” said Chirico.  “I lived on Main Street for a couple of years before I opened the shop and so I had gotten to know a lot of the merchants just because I lived there, but it really is a wonderful community.”

She recalled the impact of the Edward Hopper exhibition in June 2023, which brought thousands of visitors to the museum—and to her shop.

“During the Hopper exhibit business was great for us because people would come on the train from Boston and go to the museum, and then they would walk downtown. It created a lot of vibrancy,” Chirico said.

According to Barker, during the 12-week run of the Hopper exhibition, the museum welcomed over 37,000 visitors, while numbers surged to over 64,000 visitors total for the entire year.

As anticipation grows with the reopening of the Downtown campus, CAM is still bringing in eye-opening exhibits highlighting the works of history, tradition, and contemporary art.

While construction continues, the museum remains active at its Green Campus. On April 12, a new exhibit, Breath of Life: C.B. Fisk, Designers & Builders of Pipe Organs, opened to the public. Through photos and carvings, the show explores the artistry of Gloucester’s own C.B. Fisk Organ Company.

As the CAM-150 renovation moves forward, Barker said the museum is focused on its core mission: community storytelling and creativity.

“It’s about Cape Ann, both in the past, what’s happening here now, and what we hope will happen here in the future,” Barker said.

Juliana Pinto is a student at Endicott College studying journalism. This story was produced for the Massachusetts News Service in partnership with the Manchester Cricket.