[NHCOLL-L:2249] New Jersey State Museum Renovations

[Shirley S Albright]

The New Jersey State Museum will be embarking upon an extended period of 
physical renovation to our main building, beginning in early September 
2004.   Exhibitions in the main building are being dismantled and 
collections may not be accessible for about 18 months beginning in May 
2004.  The main building will close to visitation May 3, 2004.  Smaller 
exhibits will continue in the museum's auditorium galleries and at 225 
W. State St. (The Department of State).    Additionally, the planetarium 
will remain open except for August - mid December 2004 when asbestos 
remediation will take place.    

We are returning objects that have been on loan to our researchers, but 
if you have particular concerns about an object our staff has borrowed, 
please do not hesitate to contact myself - Shirley Albright, Assistant 
Curator of Natural History (609.292.6331) - or our Registrar, William 
Gallagher (609. 984.0261).

New requests for outgoing loans will be suspended temporarily for a 
period possibly exceeding 12-18 months.  

The GOOD news is:  NJSM will reopen with a new HVAC system, new 
lighting, new exhibitions and some high density compact storage for 
objects!    We're very excited about all of this.    

Staff will be relocated to another building in Trenton during this 
period but our telephone numbers and museum address WILL  NOT change.   
 For your reference, the Natural History Bureau telephone number is 
609.292.6330 and our address will remain:
New Jersey State Museum
Bureau of Natural History
205 W. State Street
P.O. Box 530
Trenton, NJ  08625-0530

Wish us luck!   We're on our way to a better New Jersey State Museum!