Lombard's Victorian Cottage Museum gets exemptions to expand

Editor's note: This story has been updated to correct that the Victorian Cottage Museum in Lombard plans to build a 2,000 square-foot addition to its Carriage House.

Lombard village trustees last week approved several zoning exemptions to allow for an expansion of the Victorian Cottage Museum.

The Lombard Historical Society, which runs the museum at 23 W. Maple St., plans to construct a 2,000 square-foot addition to its Carriage House.

The 1880s structure was last expanded in 2011. It was moved to its current site after the historical society acquired it in 1981.

"This will allow LHS to create some more functionality and bring all of our core operations into one building," said Alison Costanzo, executive director of the Lombard Historical Society.

She said the full-time historical society staff members at the site currently work separately in three museum campus buildings: the main 1883 Victorian Cottage, the Carriage House, and Col. William Plum's Garden Shed and Chicken Coop.

"We'll have some better community space, we'll have a full-service kitchen and our gift shop," all in one building, Costanzo said.

A few of the village-approved exceptions included allowing the Carriage House, as an "accessory building," to be 26 feet high and "exceed the ground floor area of the principal structure" of the cottage.

Since the museum has access to a parking lot shared by the Helen Plum Library and the Metra station, it was allowed an exemption for "zero off-street parking spaces."

The Carriage House extension will function as a new main entrance to the museum. It will mirror the architecture of the existing structure. The Carriage House extension also will feature a lift, giving it extra accessibility and compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act.

The project is possible due to a $750,000 Illinois public museums capital grant awarded to the historical society in 2020.

Because the museum property is owned by Lombard, the village will front most of the cost and then be reimbursed through the grant. If the costs exceeds $750,000, Costanzo said the historical society has reserves to offset them.

"We hope to be pouring concrete by the fall," said Costanzo, adding the hope is to open the expanded Carriage House by July 2022.

The Victorian Cottage Museum officially reopened to in-person tours last month after being closed through most of the COVID-19 pandemic. Guests must register and are asked to be masked indoors no matter their vaccination status.

For more information, visit lombardhistory.org.