Kenosha officials are pleased with the final product and initial results from the Civil War Museum as the contract for that building’s construction is near final approval.

The Kenosha Public Museums Board of Trustees on Thursday supported accepting the completion of the $7.68 million contract with Mount Prospect Ill.-based Nicholas and Associates for the museum’s construction. The contract is set to go before the City Council for final approval tonight.

The museum, 5400 First Ave., fully opened in September after starting construction in the spring of 2006.

The museum, which cost more than $15 million between construction and exhibits, met with some early delays when tougher-than-expected material was found underneath the surface of the site. And a fire caused by spontaneously combusting oily rags in March 2008 caused about $200,000 in damage days before a preview event.

Paula Touhey, director of the Kenosha Public Museums, said the building was ready by the museum’s initial projected opening of late March 2008, but the exhibits still needed work.

Touhey said she was quite satisfied with the museum, which is meant to show the role of the Upper Midwest during the Civil War.

“We’ve been very pleased with the building,” Touhey said. “It’s a pleasure to operate, and people have been very impressed by it and complimentary of it.”

City engineer Mike Lemens said the city’s staff also was happy with the end result.

“I think we can all be proud of how this project ended up,” Lemens said. “There were a few bumps in the road, as there is anytime you have a project of this size, but the final number came in below what we originally awarded the contract for.”

Construction has been completed for a few months, but Touhey said the contract acceptance was delayed by paperwork and personnel changes.

“It’s a very complicated project,” Touhey said. “We had a punch list that needed to be completed, and we needed to have all of the pieces together.”

Positive reviews have also come from Civil War buffs and novices alike, Touhey said.

“The response has been very good,” Touhey said.

Touhey said the museum, between free preview events and paid admission, saw about 70,000 visitors during 2008. The museum is also expecting a bigger push to draw visitors this year.

“We’re getting a lot of school groups that are booking visits, and we’ve had some special rental events,” Touhey said. “We’re getting our programming up to speed, and we’re really ready now for an onslaught of visitors. We really expect much more attendance this year.”

Marketing efforts include a $40,000 grant to promote the Salute to Freedom event, June 12-14, and some events to celebrate the 200th anniversary of Abraham Lincoln’s birth. An image of the Civil War Museum will also be displayed on phone books in the Kenosha area this year.

“We’ve just been starting to capitalize on what we have here,” Touhey said.

Some final touches still remain. More artifacts and interactive maps have been added to the museum’s center exhibit, which focuses on life on the battlefield, though funds are still being raised to complete that feature.

The museum is also featuring a new exhibit in its temporary gallery and has added more pieces of history from the Confederate side.