SAN DIEGO—Earlier this year, the Seattle Art Museum unveiled a verdant sculpture park

ON TRACK FOR 2007 Seattle Art Museum: Growing its gallery space by 70 percent in May, with an $85 million, 118,000-square-foot expansion designed by Allied Work Architecture. Philadelphia Museum of Art: Moving its costume, photography and design collections in September to a nearby Art Deco building renovated by Richard Gluckman. It’s part of a 10-year, $500 million master plan overseen by Gehry. Detroit Institute of Arts: Turning to post-modernist Michael Graves to guide a $300 million renovation and expansion, set to debut in the fall, providing 35,000 more square feet of gallery space. Los Angeles County Museum of Art: Unveiling “Phase 1” of its $130 million, Renzo Piano–designed master plan, late this year or early 2008. Highlights include a new contemporary art facility and a grand entrance pavilion crafted to unite all buildings on the 20-acre campus.

winding down to Puget Sound and San Diego’s Museum of Modern Art introduced its major expansion that included the renovation of a historic train depot building. These projects followed close on last year’s Renzo Piano–designed expansion of New York’s Morgan Library, and, most notably, Daniel Liebskind’s dramatic addition to the Denver Art Museum, both part of $100-million renovation projects. The impact of these mega-buck, mega-profile efforts goes beyond providing more exhibition space. There’s the PR-factor: when a “star-chitect” chooses to unleash his particular vision on an urban landscape, which translates to tourism dollars.

But there’s real meat, too, as these projects often spur further construction in cities that are rethinking the value of their downtowns. “The Hamilton Building is redefining architecture in Denver and has propelled renewed cultural vitality in our city,” says Mayor John Hickenlooper. “Public and private entities are redeveloping an entire block and a half of downtown based on the museum’s expansion.”

And cultural capital can translate into dollar capital. “Of course, we’re aware that the excitement that Frank Gehry brings can be realized in fundraising efforts, although we don’t even have a capital campaign for that part of the project,” says Norman Keyes, Philadelphia Museum of Art spokesperson, on its upcoming expansion plans.