The USA's National Park Service is moving ahead with a plan to create a new visitor centre and research facility at the Mesa Verde National Park in Colorado.

The need for a visitor information centre at the 81.4sq m (211sq km) park's entrance was first identified in the 1920s, while planning for a new curatorial facility has been ongoing for some years.

Now, a pre-bid meeting for constructing the US$20m (£13m, €16m) project has been held, with contractors, subcontractors, vendors and suppliers being invited to view the site and learn more about the bidding process.

The park authorities have pencilled in a date in September this year for an official groundbreaking ceremony, with completion of the centre expected some time in 2012.

Funding for the project is coming via the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. A federal appropriations bill allocated US$10.5m (£7m, €8.3m) for the visitors centre and US$11.6m (£7.6m, €9.2m) for the curatorial facility. Both will be housed in one building near the park's entrance.

The new centre will allow visitors to bypass the 30-40 minute drive to the park's current visitor centre. The curatorial portion of the building will house the park's archaeological artifact collection, currently held in a metal building that is both overcrowded and without adequate temperature control.

Mesa Verde - site of numerous ruins of homes and villages built by an ancient Pueblo tribe in the 13th century - was established as a National Park in June, 1906 and designated a UNESCO World Heritage site in September, 1978.

Image: Massimo Catarinella