Grants bring Trudeau Building project closer to $5.2M goal

SARANAC LAKE | Historic Saranac Lake (HSL) announced that it has successfully secured a series of grants to support the project to expand the museum into the Trudeau Building. "This is a big lift for a small organization like ours," stated HSL Executive Director Amy Catania. "State and federal funding is playing a key role, and we are thrilled to be bringing these dollars to be invested here in the North Country." The organization has received 13 government grants totaling over $1.8 million to support various aspects of the project, including architectural design, staffing, museum planning, and rehabilitation of both museum buildings. The most recent grant, received in August, is a $350,000 grant from the Northern Border Regional Commission (NBRC). The grant will require some additional approvals, and then HSL expects to go out to bid in January of next year for all phases of the rehabilitation of the building. "2023 will be the year when the blue vinyl goes away," said Catania. The building will once again be clad in cedar clapboards, painted the traditional dark red. Built in 1894 and utilized for over 100 years as medical offices, the Trudeau Building needs a lot of work to bring the structure back to the time when it was the home and medical office of Dr. E. L. Trudeau. Plans for the building include an elevator, structural repairs, a research room, collections storage, and a fire suppression system. The building will house exhibits interpreting the history of the Saranac Lake region — beyond the story of tuberculosis. Site planning will integrate the Trudeau Building with the neighboring Saranac Laboratory Museum, creating a coherent museum campus experience. While the rehabilitation of the Trudeau Building gets underway, Historic Saranac Lake is planning for the new exhibits. A federal grant of $50,000 from the Institute for Museum and Library Services (IMLS) is supporting exhibit planning this fall. HSL will work with a team of exhibit design professionals to create the schematic design for new exhibits in both museum buildings. Humanities scholars Melissa Otis, Phil Terrie, and Mary Hotaling will consult on the exhibits, supported by a grant from Humanities New York. "Preparation for the museum expansion has been a key behind-the-scenes activity over the last couple of years," explained HSL Archivist/Curator Chessie Monks-Kelly. Grants from the Institute of Museum and Library Services, the Northern New York Library Network, and most recently, from the Lake Placid Education Foundation, are supporting the care and organization of HSL's collection. "While we are actively growing the collection, we are also working to improve public access through our online collection database." Thinking ahead to the new museum, Monks-Kelly is excited about the research room, which will provide the space for the public to access the museum's growing archive. Last week, HSL staff added to the fundraising thermometer sign outside the Trudeau building. With the latest NBRC grant, almost $4.5 million has been raised toward the total goal of $5.2 million. "With each big grant, the thermometer makes a nice jump," stated Catania. "But most exciting is the support the project has received from individuals here in the North Country and beyond, totaling over $1.7 million. Those private donations of every size demonstrate how much people care about the museum. This is a place where history matters, where we are building a stronger community together."

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Grants bring Trudeau Building project closer to $5.2M goal

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