ALBION - No heat in the winter time. No cooling in the summer months. Soon, the Boone County Historical Society Museum in Albion will have both and other badly needed improvements.
Major renovations to the Boone County Historical Society Museum get underway next month, the most extensive to date in the 43-year history of the museum. President Pat Boilesen is thankful that the Boone County Commissioners have agreed to fund most of the improvements after previous fixes didn't hold up over time.
"We have had band aid fixes throughout the years to the roof because of leaks. Then, it was discovered that the windows and doors were also leaking and band aid fixes don't work anymore.”
One of the biggest improvements is a new roof, which costs just under $53,000 and will be started in early August according to Boilesen. Perhaps the most important renovation the museum will undertake is the addition of heating and cooling systems. Not only will it help to keep humidity down and preserve the contents of the museum, but Boilesen says it will allow them to stay open during the winter months and host more school children.
"We are not able to allow those school children to have access to what we have available because during the winter, we cannot be open because it is cold. By having some heating provided, school children will have access all year-round.”
New paint will also adorn the front of the museum on its exterior, thanks to a $5,000 grant from the Albion Economic Development Corporation in addition to matching funds. Boilesen adds that the museum is still taking donations and hope to have the improvements mostly finished by the end of 2015 or early 2016.
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