MONROE - Construction has begun on the Monroe Arts Center's addition that will add gallery space and make the facility accessible.
A ground-breaking ceremony was held Tuesday for the addition to the 150-year-old MAC building, originally built as a Methodist Church.
The two-story addition will have a full basement and will be fully accessible, providing access to the lower level and the upper-level concert hall of the existing building. The addition will provide a fine arts gallery, a second smaller gallery and a children's art gallery. There will be art classrooms for children and adults and a gift shop with the work of local artists for sale. It will include an entrance with an elevator, as well as restrooms, a promenade/lobby, a gathering space, and area for concessions.
The addition will be connected by a glass walkway to the current building.
Administrative offices will move into the addition, allowing for the restoration of the lower level of the church building, the next planned phase of the project.
"This project represents the largest capital campaign effort ever undertaken in Monroe and the most significant cultural and community investment ever made. The return on this investment will be significant for us, but more so for our children and our children's children," John Baumann, president of the Monroe Arts Center, and Chuck Wellington, president of the Monroe Arts Center Foundation, said in a joint statement.
The Kubala Washatko Architects of Cedarburg designed the new building. In Madison, they designed the Children's Museum and the new addition to the Unitarian Meeting House. C.G. Schmidt, with offices in Madison and Milwaukee, is the construction manager for the new addition. C.G. Schmidt built the Calatrava-designed Quadracci Pavilion of the Milwaukee Art Museum and locally the Monroe Clinic hospital addition.
A ground-breaking ceremony was held Tuesday for the addition to the 150-year-old MAC building, originally built as a Methodist Church.
The two-story addition will have a full basement and will be fully accessible, providing access to the lower level and the upper-level concert hall of the existing building. The addition will provide a fine arts gallery, a second smaller gallery and a children's art gallery. There will be art classrooms for children and adults and a gift shop with the work of local artists for sale. It will include an entrance with an elevator, as well as restrooms, a promenade/lobby, a gathering space, and area for concessions.
The addition will be connected by a glass walkway to the current building.
Administrative offices will move into the addition, allowing for the restoration of the lower level of the church building, the next planned phase of the project.
"This project represents the largest capital campaign effort ever undertaken in Monroe and the most significant cultural and community investment ever made. The return on this investment will be significant for us, but more so for our children and our children's children," John Baumann, president of the Monroe Arts Center, and Chuck Wellington, president of the Monroe Arts Center Foundation, said in a joint statement.
The Kubala Washatko Architects of Cedarburg designed the new building. In Madison, they designed the Children's Museum and the new addition to the Unitarian Meeting House. C.G. Schmidt, with offices in Madison and Milwaukee, is the construction manager for the new addition. C.G. Schmidt built the Calatrava-designed Quadracci Pavilion of the Milwaukee Art Museum and locally the Monroe Clinic hospital addition.