Architecture practice Perkins + Will is leading development for Detroit’s recently announced US$50m (€45.6m, £40.6m) Motown Museum – a 50,000sq ft (4,650sq m) tourist destination dedicated to the music genre.

The museum announced on Monday (17 October) a capital campaign to add 40,000sq ft (3,700sq m) to the existing 10,000sq ft (929sq m) space. Planned improvements include new interactive exhibits, a theatre, recording studios and an enlarged museum store.

When financed, Phil Freelon, managing director of Perkins + Will, will lead the execution of the museum masterplan, with Detroit-based Hamilton Anderson Associates acting as architect of record. Washington DC-based Gallagher and Associates will develop the museum’s exhibitions.

“Our goal is to bring an expanded Motown Museum to the world, to serve as an education resource for global and local communities while creating an international mecca of music and entertainment history,” said Robin Terry, CEO and chair of the Motown Museum.

“This expanded facility will be an exhilarating national and international tourist destination which will allow us to narrate and celebrate on a much larger scale the legacy of Motown, which transcends every barrier imaginable by bringing people together from all walks of life to share that unmistakable sound.”

The museum has not set a timeline for fundraising or given a potential date for breaking ground on the project. The museum expansion will sit on land acquired over the past 18 months. According to the museum, once completed, the museum campus will have a transformative effect on the surrounding Detroit neighbourhood, providing employment and long-term sustainability to the area, serving as a catalyst for new investment and interest in the area.