Event and BDP in 10m project

A 10m Heritage Lottery Fund bid is being put together by Event Communications and Building Design Partnership to refurbish York’s major museums.

The groups have been appointed by the City of York Council to work up exhibition design and architectural concepts for Castle Museum, the Yorkshire Museum and the Art Gallery and City Archive. The bid will be submitted in November’s round for capital schemes.

Cel Phelan, Event’s research and marketing director, says the project is still in its initial stages and involves a review of the buildings and their functions. “We’re looking at how best the museums would fulfill their main function of serving the public.”

The appointment, made after a presentation pitch from three shortlisted groups, is one of the first to be made after York set up its new museums and galleries service for the city this April. The service’s director Stephen Feber says the fund application is part of a bid to develop “innovative and outstanding sites”.

Feber adds: “The museums and the gallery are a central part of the tourism industry in York and we need to work hard to ensure they play a leading role well into the next century.”