LEWISTON — The design process of the new home of Museum L-A has begun, and with it is an open invitation to the community to join the conversation. “The day we have all been waiting for is here and we want to listen to our community, as we always do, to find out what they want to see in their new museum. This is very important to us,” said Rachel Desgrosseilliers, executive director. The first community meeting will take place from 5 to 7 p.m. Thursday, June 20, in the Atrium of the Bates Mill at 35 Canal St.

Taking part in the conversation will be key players from the museum and the architects working on the design. Platz Associates has been named as the leader of the architectural team, which will include Gabrielle Russell of Platz Associates, and Paul Lewandowski, whose grandmother worked in the mills, so this project is important to him in honor of her memory.

The evening will begin with a short presentation of the status of the new museum building process and its phases. This will be followed by a discussion about the relationship between the museum and the community.

The museum’s future home will be in the former Camden Yarns Mill at 1 Beech St. The site just recently dealt with a fire, but that has not deterred the museum from moving forward with its plans.

Throughout the process of design and creating exhibits, the community will be given the opportunity to receive updates and thoughts on design and more.

The museum’s hours of operation are 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday through Friday and 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday. Special tour requests and large group tours outside those hours are available by appointment. For more information, contact info@museumla.org or call 207-333-3881.