Sun-News report

LAS CRUCES - Designers want to meet with interested Las Cruces military veterans to hear ideas and answer as many questions possible about the construction of a proposed New Mexico Veterans Museum.

The meeting will be at 6 p.m. Monday at American Legion Post 10, 1185 E. Madrid Ave. Museum planner Joe Long, a retired Marine Corps colonel, will have a multi-media presentation of the $29 million project. Representatives of the New Mexico Department of Veterans' Services will also be at the meeting.

"We want to inform the veterans, and the community as a whole, about the newest state museum, and let them be part of the process," Long said. "We want to get as much buy-in from veterans as possible."

Monday's meeting is one of just several being planned statewide during the design process for the museum.

"We've been saying this is one of 15, but is probably better to say that it will be one of a bunch," Long said. "Who knows how many we'll have. Seven have been definitely scheduled and there could easily be another eight."

Las Cruces was selected last year to be the location for the museum after legislation was signed in 2009 by former Gov. Bill Richardson. RMKM Architects of Albuquerque was hired to design a 30,000-square-foot building that will serve as the cornerstone of a campus of veteran-oriented facilities, including an artifact management facility, a Veterans' Services Center, a military-style parade grounds, a family picnic and playground area,

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walking trails, and, eventually, a memorial park.

Gallagher and Associates of Silver Spring, Md., an internationally acclaimed exhibit design firm, has been hired to create a master plan of exhibits that will be displayed at the museum.

A team of experts in New Mexico history has begun working with the departments of Veterans Services and Cultural Affairs, to determine the direction the museum's story will tell.

The focus of the museum is twofold: to pay tribute to New Mexico's military veterans, and to educate people of all ages about the military service of New Mexicans from as far back as the early 1500s.

If you go

•What: A public meeting to solicit ideas and answer questions about a proposed New Mexico Veterans Museum, in Las Cruces.

•When: 6 p.m. Monday

•Where: American Legion Post 10, 1185 E. Madrid Ave.