NASA’s Glenn Research Center in Cleveland invites the public to spend an evening discussing the center’s master plan and upcoming demolition of the Special Projects Laboratory on its Lewis Field campus during an informational meeting at the Cuyahoga County North Olmsted Public Library on Tuesday, June 27. The program begins at 6 p.m. in the small meeting room and is free.

Demolition of the Special Projects Laboratory will take place this summer.

The facility currently resides within Glenn’s Lewis Field Historic District. Formerly known as the Aircraft Engine Research Laboratory, the building was built in 1943 specifically to test the whittle engine and other British jet engines during World War II.

The whittle engine, developed by Frank Whittle, a British Royal Air Force engineer air officer, is considered the world’s first turbojet engine and is one of the most valuable pieces of technology that the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics, NASA’s predecessor organization, refined.

In 1962, the facility was renamed the Special Projects Laboratory and was modified to test rocket engine materials and components.

Glenn’s research outgrew its use for the facility, and the Special Projects Laboratory was closed in 2016 due to security concerns.

Questions and comments related to the upcoming demolition and Glenn’s master plan will be welcome throughout the meeting. Those who cannot attend can send comments by mail to Les Main, NASA Glenn Research Center, 21000 Brookpark Rd., (MS 86 – 15) Cleveland, OH 44135 or by email to leslie.a.main@nasa.gov. All comments must be received by Wednesday, July 5.

The North Olmsted Public Library is located at 27403 Lorain Road. Directions to the branch can be found online at http://www.cuyahogalibrary.org/Branches/North-Olmsted.aspx.

For more information about Glenn, visit:

www.nasa.gov/glenn

For more information about Glenn facilities, visit:

http://facilities.grc.nasa.gov/