Eames Institute Unveils it Ambitious Vision for a Design Museum in Novato

The former Birkenstock campus off Highway 101 in Novato still appears as it has for decades: saw-toothed and hulking, a little spooky in its low-slung isolation off the freeway.

But what has long been a mysterious North Bay icon will soon come into a sharp relief.

On Tuesday the Eames Institute of Infinite Curiosity, the nonprofit established by the family of design and art pioneers Ray and Charles Eames, is set to file a master plan with the city of Novato that will transform the 85.5-acre site into a global design museum, attracting some 200,000 visitors a year.