Pemberton and District Museum and Archives Society has received a grant of $66,375 from the federal government to equip a new archives and display building.
"We're pretty excited. We've been applying for this grant for about three years," said George Henry, president of the Pemberton and District Museum and Archives Society.
The cost to finish the building was $150,000, said Henry, and in order to apply for the federal grant the museum needed to already have raised two-thirds of that amount themselves.
"We made an appeal to the District and the Village for a one-time grant of $50,000, which they gave us; having this and other cash that was on hand enabled us to apply to Heritage Canada," he said. "All the pieces fit together and I'm tickled pink!"
The funding will complete a new, two-storey 2,600 square-foot building with flooring, wiring and lighting, insulation and plumbing; it will pay for the creation of additional museum storage, display and public access space. The project originally started six years ago but was subject to delays.
Construction is due to begin in May. Henry said the grand opening is due to take place in the fall of 2012. The museum will remain open over the summer.
The lower floor will house displays, while a curatorial workroom and the town archives will be set on the second floor, a vast improvement from its current location, where papers and other archive material are so crammed in that the door to it is often impossible to open.
Another building that will be brought to the museum site is an old log-hewn cabin, which Henry said will be turned in a "spud museum."
"It will tell the whole story of the Pemberton potato, all the way from its award-winning debut at the Chicago World Fair to its modern virus-free uniqueness in the universe!" Henry said.
