The Cranbrook History Centre has entered the final stage of public consultation for its Museum Development Report, which would see the layout of the building updated and new and improved exhibits added to its collection.
The museum is planning to completely transform its unused upper floor and fill it with historic exhibits.
Plans are being developed to preserve the museum's collection of historic train cars. The museum is approaching stage two of the project to expand the roof covering the trains. Eventually the whole southwest side of the building will be extended to bring the train cars indoors, with the goal of being able to offer self-guided tours. Housing the trains indoors would remove safety barriers that prohibit guests from viewing the site on their own without a museum guide.
The museum is seeking feedback from the community on the report draft this month. Once this is complete, the museum will be undertaking a cost analysis, and prioritizing and phasing the project. The current timeline for completion is seven years, with plans likely being put to action in the next two years.
"We want to know what the public wants to see. We want to know what they feel. We want to know what their thoughts are. There's a lot of drawings in there of conceptual ideas. We really want to be able to see if the community, if it matches what they feel their museum could be," said museum operations manager Jared Teneese.
"We hope that anyone with an inquisitive mind will be able to come here and enjoy what we have and stay here for a longer period of time, or maybe come back multiple times because there's just so much more to do," he added.
The report suggests a few potential ideas for new and improved exhibit themes on paleontology, Kootenay wilderness, Ktunaxa culture and history, railway history, local industry in the 20th century, and noteworthy people that have left a significant cultural impact on the community.
The museum currently has a paleontology and natural history exhibit on the lower floor, but curator Honor Neve said they'll expand under the new plan.
"We're taking those things and expanding on them and looking at new ways to talk about them. They'll be new ways to engage with the actual artifacts rather than just looking and reading," said Neve.
"We have an important and significant paleontology collection. Our hope is that we'll really be able to feature that even more so than it is today. We really want to have the ability to change out the exhibits so that people are seeing more of our collection," she added.
The draft of the report was developed following consultation with various groups last summer, including museum staff and board members, City council, Ktunaxa First Nation and the greater community.
Teneese said conversations with Ktunaxa First Nation are still ongoing.
"We're hoping to have more consultations as we move forward with getting more of the exhibits looked after and completed," he said. "It's a constant growing relationship that needs to be built. We are a very colonialized museum, so bringing that in is something that we know could be difficult."
"Through the consultations that we've had so far, it's been good. It's been very positive feedback in what we've been able to present," he added.
The report suggests Ktunaxa culture like language, art and music would be a good addition to the museum, as well as history relating to residential schools, The Indian Act, the reserve pass system, and the 60s scoop.
Neve added that they're committed to working with Indigenous Elders and knowledge keepers to ensure stories are presented from the perspective of Indigenous people.
Data on visitor demographics indicates that 84.8 per cent of guests are adults. Whereas, only 8.9 per cent are under the age of 19 and 6.3 per cent are families.
These statistics have motivated staff to make the museum more kid friendly. Neve said they're planning on adding an engagement zone for children on the lower floor, with a classroom-style space that could be used to run programs and workshops. They're also keen on introducing an exploration zone with a train-themed playground.
"They'll be some space to run around and release some energy and just have some fun," she said. "Kids love the trains, but they can be really inaccessible for them because it's such a serious story sometimes. The tours sometimes aren't quite right, but there are other ways for the kids to learn. The exploration zone really allows for that through play."
The Cranbrook History Centre has been operating since 1976. In recent years, new paleontology and natural history exhibits were added and a permanent roof was constructed over its train car collection.
The museum has been adding more travelling exhibits and it's current display features supplies used by astronauts in space. It hosts monthly Ed Talks with presentations from local writers, artists and intellectuals, and runs kids camps multiple times per year.
Teneese said in-person visitation increased 60 per cent between 2023 and 2024.
"We're happy with that. We really want to keep that going. That just means our programs are doing well. Our rentals are doing great. Our events that we're doing are strong," he said.
To provide feedback on the report visit www.cranbrookhistorycentre.com and visit "The Future" tab and "Museum Development."
Residents will be able to meet with museum staff in-person at a free Family Day event on Feb. 15.
