VICTORIA – To make the Royal BC Museum’s collections and archives more accessible, the B.C. government will build a new collections and research building in Colwood.
“Today we are taking the first major step to modernize the Royal BC Museum,” said Lisa Beare, Minister of Tourism, Arts and Culture. “Our government is building a state-of-the-art facility to preserve our history for future generations. This construction project will create jobs for people on Vancouver Island and help support B.C.’s economic recovery.”
The 3.2-hectare (eight acre) piece of land at the Royal Bay development in Colwood will include a new approximately 14,000 square-metre facility. It will use mass timber construction and meet CleanBC energy efficiency standards. Building construction will generate more than 950 direct and indirect good-paying jobs.
The proposed facility will house the Royal BC Museum’s archives, collections and research department. It will improve research activities by providing dedicated research labs and learning spaces. It will also improve access to the museum’s vast collections. The new building will offer learning opportunities for students, both in person and online.
The collections and research building will hold the following collections, as well as the BC Archives:
* birds and mammals
* botany
* fish
* entomology
* history
* paleontology
* modern history
In October, crews will begin preparing the site for construction, including surveying and earthworks. The government will undertake a competitive procurement process in the coming months to select a design-build team to lead the development of the project. Project funding details will be released upon successful execution of the contract with the successful bidder. Government expects the project to break ground in winter 2021 and to be complete in summer 2024.
This is the first phase of the Royal BC Museum modernization project. The main museum and public galleries will remain at the downtown site in Victoria. The B.C. government is committed to redeveloping the museum space downtown and will announce plans in 2021.