In May 1961, President John F. Kennedy committed the nation to landing a man on the Moon and returning him safely to the Earth. After the selection of Houston as the site of the Manned Spacecraft Center (MSC), now NASA’s Johnson Space Center (JSC), the plans for the site included an auditorium and a building to house the public affairs office.
Click here for original story, Building on a Mission: The Auditorium and External Relations Office Building
Source: NASA Johnson Space Center