COUNTY News:

Los Alamos County is pleased to announce the completion of renovations to Fuller Lodge and the Historical Museum, aka the Guest Cottage.

The public is invited to a grand re-opening celebration and ribbon cutting ceremony at 2 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 31. The ceremony will be followed by tours of the facilities.

As both facilities are on the State Register of Cultural Properties, the project required close coordination with the State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO) and the Fuller Lodge Historic Districts Advisory Board.  Work began March 7, 2016. After a tremendous amount of effort by all involved, these facilities were re-open on-time and under budget—quite an accomplishment for any project of this complexity given the historical characteristics of the buildings.

Fuller Lodge was one of the main structures of the Los Alamos Boys Ranch School, serving as its headquarters in its early years.  It was converted into a mess hall and guest quarters during the Manhattan Project. The Guest Cottage housed the nurse for the Ranch School and has had many other uses since then, and now houses the Historical Museum.

“When working on a renovation project of this magnitude and with 89 and 99 year-old buildings, many significant unforeseen conditions were encountered,” County Project Manager Wayne Kohlrust said. “However, the team was able address these issues quickly and effectively. We owe much gratitude to the team of design professionals, SHPO staff, board members, and construction professionals who worked to make this project successful.”