The Cultural Advocacy Coalition of Oregon (CACO) endorsed the World Forestry Center on the slate of 14 capital construction projects. The project, which amounts to $1 million, is part of the total $9.325 million in Cultural Resources Economic Funds (CREF).
CACO consulted with the Oregon Arts Commission on finalizing the slate from 24 applications. The finalists were determined “because of their geographic and cultural diversity, economic impact, and expanded access to the arts,” said CACO’s press release.
Other cultural institutions included on the slate of projects were the Coos Art Museum (Coos Bay), Columbia River Maritime Museum (Astoria), High Desert Museum (Bend), Oregon Shakespeare Festival (Ashland), and Salem Art Association (Salem). A full list is available on the CACO website.
“We are honored to be included with other cultural keystone organizations,” said Tim Hecox, Experience Director at World Forestry Center. “This opportunity and funding will help us achieve our goal of broadening the audience of people who care about the future of our forests.”
If passed, this funding will propel World Forestry Center into a campus transformation and the construction of a new state-of-the-art Mass Timber building, adding an additional public destination to the existing Discovery Museum. The new building, currently known as the Experience Center, will house a dynamic conference hall, offices, versatile exhibition space, a café, and a centralized gathering garden. The construction techniques used to build the Experience Center will showcase the innovative technology of Mass Timber that can be replicated at scale for high-rise buildings.
“This is an exciting time for World Forestry Center. We believe forest health directly impacts the health of our communities, and the support of CACO and others is essential in our work to make forests a social priority,” said Hecox.
To learn more about World Forestry Center and its vision for the future of our campus, please visit worldforestry.org/ourfuture.