Visitors to the L. Alan Cruikshank River of Time Museum may need to do a double take when they walk in.

The museum has been closed these past 18 months due to the pandemic. Behind closed doors, things have been a beehive of activity, recreating exhibits, information, the museum shop and just updating the nearly 20-year-old building.

The museum opens Saturday, Oct. 23, with its new look. While the facility is opening “quietly,” according to Museum Executive Director Cherie Koss, the public is invited to see the changes and explore the exhibits.

“I feel really good about it (the updates),” said Koss. “We have so many great people who have been involved in the process. We are really excited about the opening.”

The museum will be open Tuesdays through Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Admission is $12, but on opening day, admission is $6.

“We want to give people the half-price day,” Koss said. “We invite everyone to come that day to see all the wonderful exhibits, the changes, the newness. They are going to be happy.”

Koss said the re-opening has been a long time in coming.

“There have been days when it seemed we would never be finished, that we couldn’t finish, but the people we have had working on these projects are phenomenal. We will be ready,” she said.

The museum is located at 12901 N. La Montana Drive.