Preservation Storage Facility to Address Critical Artifact Storage Needs

Additional funding for a major facilities project the Wisconsin Historical Society has long sought to address critical collection storage needs in Madison was approved in the 2007-2009 state budget bill. The $25 million project would house materials of both the Historical Society and the Department of Veterans Affairs. In the case of the Society, the new building would include storage space for all museum collections and space to add to those collections. In addition, as much as half of the library and archives collections would be stored there — although access to all library and archives materials would continue at the headquarters building. The approval of an additional $10 million for the construction of the building (on top of $15 million approved in the 2007-2009 budget bill) was accompanied by another $3.25 million for Society storage systems.

For sometime, staff of the Society and Veterans Affairs have been identifying the quantity and types of storage systems for their vast and varied collections. A tentative location for the new facility has been identified, and planning continues on the type of different space needs, including environmental conditions. When a final building program is developed, the State Building Commission will be asked for authority to develop final plans and specifications, bid the project and begin construction.

A collections storage building in Madison would relieve severe collections storage overcrowding in the Society's headquarters building and would consolidate existing offsite storage. The building could also support long-range plans to build a joint Society and Veterans Affairs museum downtown. A Building Commission analysis suggests that eventual integration of both facilities into a new structure specifically designed for museum operations would provide a more cost effective alternative than renovating the separate, existing museums of both organizations.

View the budget at a glance (PDF 17KB).