The Dowagiac Area History Museum moved one step closer to offering a new selection of exhibits to its visitors and patrons.

The Dowagiac City Council approved renovation plans for the second floor of the Railroad Street building during its meeting Monday evening. The restored space will provide visitors with room for two new exhibits, including one that will chronicle the history of Dowagiac.

The project marks the next step in the museum’s long-term goal of opening a third dedicated floor for exhibits. When the institution made the move from its old location at Southwestern Michigan College to the former Behnke Paint Building, only the first floor and basement were renovated for public visitation.

“In its current configuration, the museum has around 4,000 square feet of exhibit space, with a small amount of storage and workspace,” said Museum Director Steve Arseneau, who presented the plans to the council. “Because of these space considerations, many of our finest stories had to be omitted from the current exhibits.”

Last summer, the museum launched a capital campaign to raise funds to bring renovations on the second floor, kicked off by donations from the Cass County 100 Plus Women Who Care and the Historic Dowagiac Association.

“The community responded with donations ranging in size from $10 to $5,000, and the community’s level of support was reflected in the fact that we were able to raise in excess of $50,000 in less than six months,” Arseneau said.

Per an agreement with the city manager, the museum will see matching funds contributed by the city, which will be drawn from the capital development and municipal building funds.

The museum will contract the construction work out to Burling Construction, which is estimating the costs to run around $101,000. In addition, the museum will have to pay for the installation of exhibit cabinetry and production costs, which could cost as much as the renovations.

“We are still taking in funds, and hope that any funds raised that exceed the costs of renovations will go toward exhibit production,” Arseneau said.

Contractors with Burling estimate that construction will take around four months, the director said. Once the space is renovated, the museum will begin the installation of the permanent exhibit, “Dowagiac 1848 to …,” which will cover the city’s history from the railroad’s arrival in 1848 to the rehabilitation of downtown during the 1990s.

“The collection acquired by SMC since 1968, which we have full access to, and artifacts we’ve been collecting since we opened represents a very fine local history collection,” Arseneau said. “While we’ll never be able to exhibit everything, this will enable us to exhibit more artifacts to help tell our community’s stories.”