Museum of Natural History looks to residents for funding

SALT LAKE CITY — The Utah Museum of Natural History this weekend will be showing off a large portion of its 1.2 million objects housed in its basement. It will be the final "What's in the Basement" event for the museum, but it won't be the last time the public can view the relics.

The museum hopes voters will approve funding in November to help display the seldom seen artifacts year-round in a new building.

Only about 1 percent of the museum's collections are currently on display in the old, dilapidated George Thomas Building, located in the President's Circle on the University of Utah campus. But what little is on display is still enough to bring in nearly 90,000 visitors every year, a number that continues to grow, according to the museum's executive director, Sarah George.

She says attendance could grow to more than 200,000 after the new building, now under construction, opens next year.

If it opens.

Museum officials still need to come up with the remaining $15 million to pay for the $103 million building before it can welcome visitors. So far, just over $87 million has been collected, coming from state and federal funds, as well as private donations.

To meet their need, museum officials have petitioned the Salt Lake County Commission for a bond that will appear on the November ballot, meaning voters will decide on a funding option that would result in the average household paying an additional $2.40 per year in property tax, for 15 years.

Since Salt Lake County makes up at least 63 percent of the museum's visitors, officials figured county residents would be the perfect audience to vote on Proposition One, a general obligation bond to help cover remaining construction costs of the new museum.

Museum spokeswoman Patti Carpenter said that so far, they've been met with little resistance and the Utah Taxpayers Association has said they won't oppose the measure.

"The main reason for the new building is to protect the collection," she said. The 1.2 million objects either collected by scientists, purchased or donated to the museum are currently filling the basement or spread between three other buildings on campus.

"It'll be nice to have it all under one roof at the new building," Carpenter said.

New construction also offers other benefits, including temperature controls to suitably preserve the vast collection, as well as earthquake protection and room to expand exhibits.