Field Station: Dinosaurs, the family attraction in Overpeck County Park in Leonia, will be under new ownership as a nonprofit for its 13th season next year.
The exhibit features about three dozen animatronic dinosaurs, with live shows, games and activities designed to bring the long-extinct creatures to life for children and their families. Its season runs from May to November.
The change is meant to ensure Field Station: Dinosaurs continues for years to come, said Guy Gsell, executive producer of the attraction.
“This is all about setting us up for the future,” he said. “We want to make sure the park can continue its mission and its ability to serve the people of Bergen County and New Jersey for the next 15, 20 or 50 years. We want to be that kind of institution.”
As a nonprofit, the park will be able to accept donations and apply for grants. People who want to volunteer their time will be able to work as docents. Field Station also hopes to hire a full-time education director to steer the curriculum and bring new educational experiences to the exhibit.
“There are so many people who are interested in the exact type of educational shows and lessons that we teach, and they want to support that sort of thing,” Gsell said. “Now this gives them an opportunity to be a part of our team and deliver this programming to kids.”
Gsell will stay on as executive director for three years during the transition, and is one member of the foundation’s new board of directors. The foundation is looking to raise $25,000 ahead of the park’s planned May opening to help with costs associated with settling up the nonprofit and other expenses to “ensure success next year,” Gsell said.
Gsell and the other founders and owners of Field Station: Dinosaurs have agreed to donate all the park’s assets, including its life-size animatronics to the newly formed tax-exempt, nonprofit Field Station Education Foundation. In May, three new dinosaurs — two T-Rexes and a Spinosaurus — will join the others on display, Gsell said.
Field Station: Dinosaurs moved to Leonia in 2016 from its original location in Secaucus. In 2021, the exhibit signed a five-year lease with the Bergen County Improvement Authority to remain in the park and it became an official education partner with the county.
The lease, which is set to expire at the end of next year, is with Field Station: Dinosaurs LLC. The new nonprofit entity must engage with the county and BCIA to establish a new contract, county officials said.
This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: Dinosaurs exhibit in Leonia NJ going nonprofit. What it means