A conceptual design of the permanent Discover! Children's Museum shows what the facility might look like at its location near Home Depot in Chehalis. Organizers said the current rendering is just a concept and will be changed.
Conceptual designs are being developed for the first full-scale children’s museum in Lewis County.
The Discover! Children’s Museum, a pilot project for the past year, recently identified an acre lot on Northwest Louisiana Avenue in front of Home Depot in Chehalis for an 18,000-square-foot, permanent museum.
Organizers are working with TGD Architects in Centralia to design the new museum.
Allyn Roe, vice chairman of the Children’s Museum Advisory Group, said the group plans to build a museum large enough to offer space for early childhood development programs and local preschools.
“The facility is designed to focus on early childhood learning through the use of our fun exhibits and with our partners in early childhood development,” Roe said. “We are planning on having a preschool within our building and have been speaking with Reliable Enterprises to explore the possibility of partnering with their Head Start and In-Tot programs.”
The facility will likely be a concrete “tilt-up” constructed building with about 15,000 square feet of floor area and a mezzanine within the building, adding another 3,000 square feet, Roe said.
Roe said the conceptual renderings for the site are still a work in progress and will change.
Groundbreaking for the new museum is not expected until next year. The museum is estimated to cost about $3 million to build.
Last month, the Chehalis City Council directed city staff to work out details of a lease agreement for the museum, which will be built on city property.
The advisory group, which operates under the nonprofit Friends of the Chehalis Community Renaissance, is proposing a 20-year lease with options to extend it for six additional 5-year terms, to total 50 years. Rent will be $30,525 annually, which over 20 years would be $708,000 and over 50 years would be almost $2.5 million, according to the group.
Roe said the group is actively seeking funds for the museum through local contributions and state and federal grants.
“We needed a location with high visibility, high traffic, adequate parking, and outdoor area for exhibits, events and play,” Roe said. “We found this by leasing property near Home Depot.”
The pilot children’s museum opened in the Twin City Town Center in February 2013 for a six-month trial run that was later extended through December. More than 14,600 adults and children had paid admission to the museum, nearly tripling projected attendance. The pilot museum closed Dec. 29.
