Check out the consultant's findings on facility options below.

Option 2a: Two Archives sites

Option 2a involves the distribution of major components of the Archives.

The public-facing component will act as a “storefront” and will be centrally located in Winnipeg in order to be accessible by the majority of Winnipeggers. It will house a part (approximately 25%) of the collection, along with public programming spaces such as a multi-purpose lobby area, classroom, and a reading room.
The majority of the collection (approximately 75%) and the specialist Archival spaces (Processing, Digitization Lab, Conservation Lab, and Cold Storage) would be in an offsite location, presumably at a lower cost than the downtown location.

Key Features	Distribution of operations between a downtown site (storefront) and an offsite location to store the majority of the collection. Includes climate-controlled vault for 25% of holdings onsite (remaining 75% at separate facility). Supports current and improved program needs.
Benefits	Smaller storefront easier and quicker to secure; includes 20-year growth horizon.
Drawbacks	Assumes two new builds needed. Most costly of all 4 options. Space/equipment/staffing duplication over two sites. Clients may need to request records 1-3 days in advance. Risk of loss and damage to records due to frequent transport Significant work needed to transition to this model of service delivery.
Unknowns	Availability of site for both downtown and offsite locations.

Consultation has concluded