For a decade or more, our Montana Legislature has grappled with the increasing need to renovate both Romney Hall on the Montana State campus in Bozeman and the Montana Historical Society museum facility in Helena.
A compelling case has been made for both these projects, but they have repeatedly come up just short of final approval in the complicated legislative process.
Romney Hall is a great and imposing old structure constructed in 1922 during the administration of Warren G. Harding. There is nothing wrong with Romney structurally. It is a Bastille of a building. But it has no modern heating, air conditioning, ventilation or modern fire suppression systems. It is inaccessible to students, faculty and staff with disabilities.