Now dubbed The Charles and Helen Reichert Planetarium after $850K donation
(Long Island, NY) Suffolk County’s Vanderbilt Planetarium, located on the expansive grounds of the Vanderbilt Museum, is about to get a name change.
Now dubbed The Charles and Helen Reichert Planetarium after a $850,000 donation made by the Fort Salonga couple, the well-known Planetarium – part of the Vanderbilt Museum and located on the expansive grounds of the former estate of William K. Vanderbilt II – is a popular fixture for tourists and students on school trips. However, the new name change is causing worry among some members of the community, as well as several local lawmakers.
Suffolk County Legislator Jay Schneiderman, I-Montauk, said expressed concern that the drastic name change may harm the legacy of the Planetarium, which recently re-opened this past March after major $4 million renovation project was completed on the facilities.
“We’ve spent a long time branding this facility, we’ve spent a lot of money on this facility…everybody knows it as the Vanderbilt planetarium. I’m a little bit concerned,” he said. “I don’t want to discourage people from being philanthropic. I just hope were not hurting ourselves in the long run.”
Lance Reinheimer, interim executive director of the Vanderbilt Museum acknowledged the potential public confusion sure to be generated by the Planetarium’s new moniker, but said that the move was for the greater good in the long run.
“It’s a valid concern,” he said. “This is a private donation, it’s not a corporate donation, and we’re naming the building in recognition of the gift.”
The Reichert’s donation is not in one lump sum- instead, it wuill be distributed throughout the next ten years as follows: 80,000 per year for the first five years followed by $90,000 per year for the second five years.
