But after the March 1989 oil spill, and the ensuing legal settlements, Seward remolded its vision to combine research, animal rehabilitation and education. The idea took hold with then-Gov. Wally Hickel, who once worked in Seward, and the Exxon Valdez Oil Spill Trustees Council, which oversees money from the oil spill settlement. One of those early visionaries, former city manager Darryl Schaefermeyer, is now the center's project administrator. Huge windows wrap around three animal habitats, which are molded from concrete and painted to resemble marine rookeries and sea lion haul-outs in Kenai Fjords.
Windows open up to stunning views of Resurrection Bay.
Already, the Exxon Valdez oil spill trustee council has agreed to fund five research projects based at the SeaLife Center and the EPA has set up a sixth. Before long, researchers will be watching how harbor seals react to certain foods, how river otters respond to oil-tainted foods and how genetic codes affect pink salmon survival. We're basically a research facility that's open to the public for viewing,'' said Kim Sundberg, the center's executive director. The center's senior marine mammal scientist, Don Calkins, said he doesn't see a problem with visitors and waves of schoolchildren pressed to the glass while scientists work. Researchers will retain some privacy.