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For the first time, Alberta’s dinosaur museum in Drumheller will receive cultural infrastructure funding from the Government of Canada.

The Honourable Kent Hehr, Minister of Veterans Affairs and MP for Calgary Centre announced $3,595,000 in cultural infrastructure funding the Royal Tyrrell Museum Sunday.

“As Canada’s premier palaeontological institution, the Royal Tyrrell Museum has become an important stop in the Canadian Badlands,” Hehr said. “This expansion will allow the Museum to continue its tradition of excellence in programming and outreach to museum visitors.”

A total of $9.3 million is being invested to expand the museum, including $5,705,000 from the Government of Alberta and $3,595,000 from the Government of Canada.

READ MORE: Drumheller dinosaur museum in Alberta gets $9.3M expansion

Construction, which includes additional classroom and learning laboratory space and an expansion of distance learning studios, is expected to begin in the spring of 2017 and be completed in the spring of 2019, and the museum will remain open to the public throughout the construction period.

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The Department of Canadian Heritage says the funding will also help in creating more space for to hands-on activities that encourage exploration and multi-use rooms for meetings, school groups and additional outreach areas.

Minister Hehr made this announcement on behalf of the Honourable Mélanie Joly, the minister of Canadian Heritage.

“I am thrilled that this investment will allow the Museum to increase its programming reach and create greater opportunities for engagement,” Minister Joly stated.

The Royal Tyrrell Museum, opened in 1985, houses one of the world’s largest dinosaur displays and is the only Canadian museum dedicated exclusively to the science of paleontology.