Orioles owner and philanthropist David Rubenstein is donating $1.5 million to the Jewish Museum of Maryland, allowing it to complete an ambitious modernization of the museum’s public spaces.

The gift, being announced today, will allow the museum “to cross the finish line to accomplish everything we wanted to” in an upgrade to be showcased when it reopens in early 2025, Sol Davis, the museum’s executive director, said in an interview.

“David’s gift is essentially supporting and naming the front of the house,” which will be transformed, Davis said. Construction started in late 2023.

The front — the area beyond the lobby — will be called The David M. Rubenstein Exhibition Arcade. The space is to branch out into galleries, a production studio and a library.

Rubenstein grew up in Baltimore and graduated from City College in 1966. He has said he bought the Orioles earlier this year largely because he wanted to give back to his hometown.

“I’ve been interested in this area of history,” said Rubenstein, whose books have touched on economics and history, including one released Tuesday on the American presidency. He said the museum project will help preserve and share Maryland’s Jewish heritage and culture.

The museum, adjacent to the Inner Harbor, described its mission in a news release as connecting people “to Jewish experiences and Maryland’s Jewish community to its roots.”

The museum opened in 1998 as a successor organization to the Jewish Historical Society of Maryland.