Montana PBS To Hold Groundbreaking

Montana State University will welcome the public to a groundbreaking celebration for the planned expansion of Montana PBS on Tuesday, April 29, at 3 p.m.

The groundbreaking will be held at the site of the building expansion, MSU’s Visual Communications Building at the corner of South 11th Avenue and Grant Street. The expansion will add more than 32,000 square feet to the building, which houses Montana PBS and MSU’s School of Film and Photography.

“Designed to be both an advanced technological production facility and an inspiring, collaborative hub for students, the expanded Visual Communications Building will empower Montana PBS to tell Montana’s story with more depth, clarity and creativity than ever before,” said Aaron Pruitt, Montana PBS director and general manager.

Thanks to a new $5 million donation, Montana PBS has reached a fundraising milestone that will see a major expansion of the station located at Montana State University, as well as increased investments in news and public affairs programming to reach across the state. Approximately $16 million of the money raised will fund a roughly 15,000-square-foot expansion of the MSU Visual Communications Building at the corner of South 11th Avenue and Grant Street, which is home to Montana PBS and MSU’s School of Film and Photography. This rendering depicts a concept for the expansion.

The renovation will include a shared lobby connecting MSU’s School of Film and Photography and the offices of Montana Shakespeare in the Parks, KGLT Radio and Montana PBS, an area intended to encourage student collaboration across artistic disciplines. In addition, new, state-of-the-art technology and production spaces will increase Montana PBS’s current capabilities. The expansion will include a large TV studio, production control rooms, a green screen studio, video editing suites and other broadcast technology.

The building will be home to the new Joseph S. Sample classroom and studio, which will serve as a screening venue, lecture hall, event center and production studio. Its versatility and large capacity of 192 seats will allow it to host large enrollment MSU core classes (including SFP’s FILM 101), live audience televised productions and university events.

“Montana PBS has been a cornerstone of the MSU community and a fixture in Montana life for four decades. This expansion will make it possible for Montana PBS to do even more to serve the families and communities in Montana and provide valuable opportunities for Montana State students,” said MSU President Waded Cruzado.

Immediately following the groundbreaking ceremony, a live in-person appearance by Clifford the Big Red Dog will offer fans an opportunity for photos in the Montana PBS studio.

Kristina Martin, Montana PBS director of development, said fundraising for the Building Possibilities campaign began in early 2019.

“In the six years since, Montana PBS has raised nearly $32 million needed to move forward, though we anticipate we will need to raise additional funds before construction is complete,” she said. Martin credited Cruzado for her strong support of this project, including her support of fundraising efforts.