Staff told the executive committee that they plan to reallocate existing funds to complete the detailed design for the Waynesboro project and position the museum to apply for the state capital construction pool.

Staff said the construction manager (JMU) will commission independent peer reviews (value-engineering study and cost estimate) and that staff will submit the full study to DEB as part of the capital request. Because prior appropriations did not fully fund detailed design and construction costs rose during the delay, the museum proposed using $53,000 from the Waynesboro account, $23,000 from closed-project accounts that came in under budget, and $70,000 from an operational revenue account to reach $150,000 for detailed design work.

Foundation members present had endorsed the approach, and staff said the board would be asked to approve the internal reallocations at the trustees meeting. The presenter framed the expenditure as an investment to enable the museum to compete for a larger capital request—potentially for a project in the $20 million to $25 million range—by completing the peer-review and design materials DEB requires.

On facilities, staff reported the Gina Adams Education Pavilion is nearly complete; mounting hardware is installed and museum staff plan to install a bird sculpture (based on fossils from Carmel Church) in three pieces once railings are delivered and installed. Staff described the pavilion and the sculpture as programming, event and rental opportunities, and said they will determine rental pricing and how pavilion-only rentals will be structured relative to the Hall of Ancient Life.

Committee members were told that staff will coordinate any necessary approvals and present the proposed reallocations and project schedule at the trustees meeting for a formal vote.