Visitors to Railroad Days in Snoqualmie this weekend can get a sneak preview of the Northwest Railway Museum’s new education center. The new building, scheduled to open in October, will be a stop on the Steam Train rides during the festival.

Funding for the building includes a $3.6 million loan from the Washington State Housing Finance Commission.

“We’re delighted that we could support the museum’s preservation not just of trains and railroad artifacts, but of the Northwest’s unique railroad history,” said Karen Miller, chair of the Housing Finance Commission.

The Commission’s Nonprofit Facilities Program enhances communities in Washington State by issuing tax-exempt bonds. More than $1 billion has been issued to support 168 facilities across the state.

“With this bond we were able to break ground so we didn’t lose other funding opportunities,” said Peggy Barchi, event and marketing manager of the Northwest Railway Museum.

“The really cool thing about this new building is that it will give more accessibility throughout the year to the train shed building so that people can see the collection,” she added. “Right now people can only get up there by riding a train to it.”

The new center is one of the final planned pieces of the museum’s campus. It will offer not only restrooms and a bookstore, but spaces for learning such as classrooms and a public reading room.

The Railway Education Center will also combine staff offices into one building. Museum staff will were previously divided across the museum grounds, and look forward to a collaborative space with their coworkers.

For more information about the Northwest Railway Museum, visit www.trainmuseum.org.