Royal Alberta Museum to open in early 2018

Chris Robinson points to a glassed-in area on the roof of the new Royal Alberta Museum.

"This is our greenhouse where we'll grow the plants for our bug room," explains the museum's executive director.

It's one of the new features in thespace at 103A Avenue and 98thStreet, which is expected to open to the public in early 2018, according to Robinson.

The $375.5-million project will feature 72,000 square feet of permanent exhibition space, roughly double the areain the museum's old location whichclosed in December 2015.

According to Alberta Infrastructure, no firm decision has been made about the future use of the Glenora facility.

"Making a museum is pretty hard stuff"

7 years ago

Duration 2:08

Chris Robinson, executive director of the Royal Alberta Museum, gives us a sneak peek of the new downtown location of the RAM opening in 2018.

The new locationwill showcase 400 exhibits displaying 5,300 objects.

Standing in one of three new large loading bays where a steady stream of trucks depositwooden crates filled with display cases, artifacts and modelsRobinson admits, "making a museum is pretty hard stuff.

"The museum has 99 permanent staff and we have about 60 temporarily helping us with the mammoth task of moving the new museum downtown," Robinson said.

As the opening date draws nearer,Robinsoncan't wait for visitors to see the new facility. Standing inthe main lobby, hesaid he believes the spaces is laid out in an intuitive way.

"You can see all the galleries, you can see the admissions desk, you can see the cafe, you can see the gift shop so everything will just, I hope, make sense to the visitor."

Robinson thinks they've also been able to blurthe linebetween previously off-limitareas of the museum and the everyday guestexperience.

He points to the nursery in the popular bug room, wherethe creepy crawlers hatch,something the public will be able to see for themselves.

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Carmen Li, who is helpingto pack up 2.4million objects in the collection and making sure it allgets safely to the new location,has converted the old feature gallery space into aninspection and packing centre.

"We're staging artifacts and specimens that will be going on display at the new museum," said Li, head of conservation.

"Mammoth" show and tell at the Royal Alberta Museum

7 years ago

Duration 3:21

Meet head of conservation Carmen Li and learn more about how they're preparing the Royal Alberta Museum collection for the move to the new downtown location opening in 2018.

Dressed inwhite gloves and lab coats, staff painstakinglycleanand stabilize artifacts for transport.

Many of the objects are getting something new, a barcode.

"Now will be able to track their every step downtown to the new museum," said assistant curator of geology MelissaBowermanstandingin the gem vault amidsamplesof gold, meteorites and crystals.

Robinson estimates they've printed a kilometreworth of barcodes for the museum on the move.

"It's a lot of work to make a space that's 419,000 square feet. We've got a pretty busy summer ahead."

You can see more from the old and new locations of the Royal Alberta Museum on Our Edmonton: Capital Gems Edition Saturday at 10 a.m. and Sunday and Monday a 11 a.m. on CBC TV.