International Crane Foundation
Baraboo, WI
The George Archibald Welcome Center includes a theater, interior exhibit gallery, gift shop, and associated support spaces.
Design Framework Characteristics
Project Type
The International Crane Foundation (ICF), headquartered in Baraboo, WI, works in over 50 countries worldwide to conserve all 15 species of cranes and the ecosystems on which they depend. Starting in 2017, after finishing an earlier planning effort with ICF, CLR Design continued to help ICF turn their vision for a new visitor center and renovation of 10 acres of their global headquarters into a reality. The new 5,000 sf George Archibald Welcome Center includes a theater, interior exhibit gallery, gift shop, and associated support spaces. Other renovations include four new crane holding buildings, 11 new or enlarged crane exhibits, new visitor paths with 2 new view shelters, and a new interpretive package to bring the stories alive.
One of the things that distinguishes CLR is their ethic around landscape – a blending of the surroundings in a way that captures the nuances of the place it represents.
— Kim Smith, ICF Chief Operating Officer
Project Characteristics
- Only facility worldwide to exhibit all 15 species of cranes in one location
- New visitor center accommodates attendance growth for next generation
- Comprehensive interpretive overlay to guest experience
- Links in situ global field conservation with headquarters mission central
- Upgraded state-of-the-art management facilities
- Integration into prairie landscape, enhancing with key views and vistas