Sited in a 646 acre wildlife sanctuary, the new 3,700 sq ft. natural history museum will create exhibition space for a collection of specimens and artifacts to educate the public with an emphasis on the local region’s natural history. The museum will include two floors of exhibition space, a 600 sq. ft. two story diorama, a reception area, public restrooms, collection storage, a classroom and an office.

A major part of the design is to create a project that is in very substantial ways a sustainable design. The project will employ sustainable construction technologies and ideas throughout. By utilizing a geothermal heating and cooling system along with a very large photovoltaic and hot water solar array on the barn’s south facing roof, it is hoped the building will to come close to being energy self sufficient.  This approach to design will be featured in the presentations given to the visitors of the natural history museum and how the ideas embodied in the project relate to the natural history of today.

The new museum will re-use an original barn structure located on the site to house the main exhibition spaces.  The barn’s post and beam frame reassembled on a new foundation and re-clad with super-insulated panels.

In contrast to the enclosed exhibition space of the barn, an open contemporary addition constructed with large areas of glass, a green roof and green walls will wrap the renovated barn.  This addition will connect the outdoors of the wildlife sanctuary to the interior space of the museum.