Renovation Preservation Assessment and Plan

FAIN: PG-258347-18

Valentine First Freedom Center (Richmond, VA 23219-1527)
Alicia Starliper (Project Director: May 2017 to September 2019)

Hiring a preservation consultant to assess current conditions in areas of the museum targeted for renovation and ultimately to provide recommendations for inclusion in the renovation design plan. The Valentine’s renovation plans will improve the museum’s storage capacity, research access, and workspace for its extensive collection of artifacts and works of art. These include more than 30,000 textiles and costumes reflecting the largest collection of its kind in the American South, and an archive of more than 1,200,000 objects (rare and reference books, prints, ephemera, manuscripts, research files, and photographs) that represent four hundred years of the history of Richmond.

The Valentine is launching the final phase of its Second Century Campaign, designed to strengthen the institution’s physical and financial assets. This is the most significant part of the campaign, as it involves renovating the upper two floors of the museum building to create state-of-the-art storage and access spaces for the Valentine’s holdings of 1.6 million objects representing 400-year old Richmond, Virginia—a region that has played a significant part in America’s history and growth. To ensure the protection and sustainability of the collection, the Valentine is requesting a National Endowment of the Humanities (NEH) Preservation Assistance Grant (PAG) for Small Institutions to hire a preservation consultant. The consultant will assess the museum’s renovation plans to address environmental conditions, storage/infrastructure, staff work areas, collections security and public access. The consultant will also provide input during the development of the design and construction plans.