Indiana State Library to add Statehouse visitor center

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) - The first floor of the Indiana State Library is being transformed into a Statehouse visitor education center as part of a $2.5 million upgrade.

The new education center is intended to remedy space limitations inside the Statehouse by having groups that are visiting the building meet inside of the nearby library and then enter the Statehouse through an improved tunnel, The (Munster) Times (http://bit.ly/1MBCnCR ) reported. Schoolchildren sometimes have to wait outside for up to a half hour.

The project also will add visitor restrooms and create a 1,800-square-foot hall featuring educational displays, exhibits and library collections to teach students about the state. There will be games and items from the state library's collections.

The new library "will provide yet another way for Hoosiers and tourists to grow their knowledge of Indiana's history and how state government operates," said Jessica Robertson, commissioner of the Indiana Department of Administration. Educational displays at the Indiana Statehouse have been restricted due to regular use by the General Assembly and other government bodies.

The center's cost is included in the $53.5 million that state lawmakers approved earlier this year for new buildings and renovations to celebrate the state's bicentennial next year.

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Information from: The Times, http://www.thetimesonline.com