Leers Weinzapfel Associates celebrated the groundbreaking for National Museum of Forest Service History Conservation Legacy Center! LWA Principal Tom S. Chung, director Lisa Tate and board members broke ground with golden shovels for the soon to be constructed National Conservation Legacy Center.

The Conservation Legacy Center for the non-profit, National Museum of Forest Service History in Missoula, Montana will educate the public about the history and ongoing conservation work of the United States Forest Service (USFS). The design is inspired by the qualities of these forests as valuable recreational and economic resources throughout history; it also echoes features of the local surrounding mountain landscape.

The Center will be itself an exhibit, featuring representative wood species throughout the US, wood products developed with USFS Forest Products Lab, and an array of mass timber products such as glulams, cross laminated timber (CLT) and Mass Plywood Panels (MPP). Tree-like columns will exhibit timber craft and advanced engineering; these will showcase sixteen representative trees from national forests.